. 


THE  ORANGE: 

ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


WM.  A.  SPALDING. 


NAVEL  D RANGE, 


Orange  Culture  affbrdi  him  both  a  Career  and  a  Be  venue."— BISHOP. 


THE  ORANGE: 
Its  Culture  in 'California. 


WITH 


A  Brief  Discussion  of  the  Lemon.  Lime,  and  Other  Citrus  Fruits. 


By  WM,  A,  5FALEING-, 

< ' 


With  an  Appendix  on  Insects  injurious  to  Citrus  Trees, 
and  Hcnv  to  Combat  Them. 

[FROM  THE  WOKK  or  JK-KN.  MAITHJ;\\   rooKE.] 


ItlVKKSJDE: 

AM)    HOKTICULTUKICT   STK4M    PKINT. 

1885. 


•AINED 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress  in  the  year  1884, 

By  WM.  A.  SPALDING, 
In  the  pfflce  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  Washington,  D.  C. 


Main  Lib? 


Till-:  &E8FERIDEU. 


Where  the  sun"  goeth'jlown  in  the  West, 
Where  the  spirits  of  earth  find  rest — 
Tn  the  occident-land  of  the  blest, — 
There  dwell  the  Hespcrides. 

They  are  daughters  of  Erebus — Xight, 
IIL  vestments  of  shadow  bedight, 
And  they  know  not  the  dot/  with  its  light- 
Those  Sisters  Hcsperides. 

They  are  guarding  the  apples  of  gold — 
Earth's  gift  to  fond  Hera  of  old, 
And  their  vigils  forever  they  hold 
O'er  the  fruit-laden  trees. 

And  the  spirits  of  earth  and  air 
Know  not  thai  the  Sisters  are  there, 
Or  the  trees  with  their  fruitage  so  rare 
In  that  oceident-land  of  peace \ 

For  darkness  is  over  them  thrown: 
Night  claimeth  the  fruit  for  his  own; — 
Well  he  guard eth  the  Great  Unknown, 
With  his  shades,  the  Hcsperides. 

O  glorious  land  of  the  West!—' 
O  land  I  hold  dearest  and  best, 
Elysium  is  not  then  possessed 

Of  fruits  so  enchanting  as  these. 

Thy  graces  thai  arc  ever  in  sight 
Hear  apples  of  gold  not  less  bright, 
And  their  guardians  are  angels  of  light, 
Obeying  the" Day1  s  decree*. 

Blent  mortals  who  there  do  abide! 
Of  the  fruit  that  no  shadows  hide 
They  may  eat  and  be  satisfied, 
Nor  fear  the  Hesperides. 


298089 


PREFACE. 


These  pages  set  forth  my  observations  of  the  films  Fruit  Industry  during  n  resi- 
dence of  eleven  years  in  Southern  California,  and  my  experience  as  a  praciira' 
horticulturist  for  four  years.  The  .principles  ot  propagation  and  planting  I  have 
worked  out  with  my  own  hands,  and  know  them  to  be  more  than  abstract  theo- 
ries. In  matters  pertaining  to  the  gathering,  packing  and  shipping  of  fruit,  I  have 
discussed  established  methods,  advocating  the  most  advanced.  I  hope  this  treatise 
may  prove  a  pleasant  reminiscence  to  those  of  its  readers  who  are  experienced 
orange  growers,  and  that  it  may  aid  the  novice  who  lays  hold  of  the  orange  tree 
to  avoid  the  thorns. 

W.  A.  S. 
Riverside,  ('«'. 


1  N  I)  E  X. 


. 

Antiquity  W  the  Citrus  Family 3 

Acapulco  ( > ranges 22 

Arrangement  of  Nursery 32 

After  Care  of  Xursery .'54 

Age  of  Stock  for  Budding..-. ."•<; 

Arranging  an  Orchard -1.') 

Alternately  Opposite 47 

Advantage*  of  Septuple  System 40 

Applying  Manure 64 

Artificial  Fertilizers <>4 

Application  of  Tree  Washes (>7-(.»7 

Advisable  Crops OS 

Analyses  of  Oranges  and  Lemons 47 

Budded  Varieties 21 

Baldwin'i  Favorite  Orange 22 

Bergarnot  Orange , , 22 

Boxes  for  Planting  Seeds 27 

Budding , ,,. ,.... 35 

Buds— Choosing ttllii 30 

Buds — Preparing <. 3(5 

Buds— Cutting.. 37 

Budded  Stock— Care  of. 3ft 

Boundary  Lines 44 

Balling  Trees 51 

Broken  Balls 52 

Balling,  When  not  Desirable .7)2 

Backsets 55 

Basin  Method  of  Irrigation 58 

Barrel  Irrigation 50 

Black  Scale 66-93 

Budded  Trees— When  They  Yield 68 

Budded  Fruit— Loss  Capacity 70 

Boxes  for  Packing ,..,....  72 

Budding  Old  Trees 74 

Bonnie  Brae  Lemon SO-S7 

Country— Orange  Growing 9 

Characteristics  of  the  Orange IS 

Covering  the  Seed 20 

Cold— Protection  from 31 

Cold  Weather— Lemons 81 

Condition  of  Stock  for  Budding 30 

Cutting  Stocks  and  Inserting  Buds  ......  37 

Cutting  Stocks  after  Budding 38 

Cutting  Stubs „  38 


Care  of  Budded  Stock  .....................  .....  3y 

Caution  .................................................  30 

Clearing  and  Preparing  Land  ...............  41 

Cactus  Land  .........................................  42 

Check  Hows—  Square.  ..........................  45 

Check  Hows—  Quincunx  .......................  47 

Cultivation—  Object  ..............................  55 

Cultivation  versus  Irrigation  ...............  55 

Cultivating  Orchard  .............................  5»; 

<  'ultivating  after  Irrigation  ..................  59 

Cultivation  —  Too  Soon..  .......................  59 

Compost  Heap  ......................................  o;; 

Cottony  Cushion  Scale  .....................  06-90 

Crops  Not  Advisable  ............................  69 

Crops  Advisable  ...................................  09 

Citrus  and  Deciduous  Mixed  .................  69 

Curing  Fruit  ..............................  ...........  71 

Cleaning  Fruit  ...........  .*.  ........................  72 

Cost  of  Picking  and  Packing  .............  ..  72 

Contract  Picking  ..................................  73 

Citrons...-  ..........................................  ...  89 

Chinese  Lemons  ..........  .........................  89 

Citrus  Leaf  and  Fruit  Scale  ..................  95 

DU  Hoi  Orange  .....................................  22 

Drained  —  Xursery  ................................  32 

Distances  Apart  for  Trees  ............  .........  45 

Distances  for  Check  Rows  —  Quincunx..  49 
Distances  for  Check  Rows—  Septuple  ...  50 
Dormant  Stage  ......................................  51 

Damp  Straw  for  Packing  Hoots  ............  52 

Depth  of  Planting  ................................  54 

Die  IJack  ........................  ...................  »...  66 

Diversified  Planting  .............................  68 

Dry—  Fruit  Gathered  When  ..................  71 


se  of  Propagating  House  ...........  30 

"Exposure  —  Orange  Orchard  ..................  40 

Easiest  Method  of  Clearing  Land  .........  41 

Economize,  in  Buying  Trees  ..................  43 

Earth—  Settling  in  Planting  ..................  54 

Enemies  to  Young  Orange  Plants  .........  31 

Enemies  of  the  Orange  Tree  ............  64-98 

Economy  Wins  ....................................  £8 

Eureka  Lemon  ....................................  63 


VI 


TNDEX, 


Florida  ( >  ranges — 23 

Filling  Propagating  Boxes 27 

Frosts— Avoiding 40 

Fuel  from  Cleared  Land 41 

False  Economy  in  Buying  Trees 43 

Filling  Planting  Holes 54 

Furrow  Irrigation 5S 

Fertilizing <>2 

Fertilizing  by  Water •;:'. 

Fertilizing  by  Water  not  Sufficient !>•'> 

Fungus,  or  Smut (><> 

Force  Pump 07 

Fruit — Thinning (}J) 

Fruit— After  Production <il» 

Fruit— Not  Left  too  Long 71 

Freights  on  Fruit 7-'> 

Frost  on  Lemons SI 

Qermination  of  Seeds 31 

Ground— Nursery— Laying  Otl' 32 

Grafting 3i» 

Growth — Periods  of 51 

Gophers Ii4 

Grasshoppers »>•"> 

Gum  .Disease <>(» 

Grader,  Orange 72 

Genoa  Lemon si; 

Garcelon's  Knobby  Lemon si; 

Homosassa  Orange 22 

Holes  for  Trees,  Digging 53 

High  Pruning (10 

I  lints  About  Pruning «>2 

Helps  to  Tide  Over »>s 


Introduction  of  the  Orange  in  Calif 

Inserting  the  Seed 

Insects — Nursery  Free  From 

Insects  Injurious  to  Citrus  Tree* 

Insecticides 

hilluenceof  Stock  on  Hud 

Indications  of  Buds 

J»  N.-wly  Planted  Trees 

"  Want  of  Irrigation 

Irrigation  of  Nursery 

'•  "  Newly  Planted  Trees 

"  Various  Methods 

•'  of  Orchard 

A  Matter  of  Education 

^••ason 

"  Fertilization  Lobeoonfiidered 

Implements  for  Budding 

"    Clearing  Land 

••     Laying  oil'  Orchard.... 
"    Pruning 


Konah  Orange 22 

Kid  (Jlove  Orange 22 

Key  to  Septuple  System 50 

Knobby  Lemon Si; 

Lowlands jo 

Location  of  Orange  Orchard 40 

Land— Clearing  and  Preparing 41 

Laying  Off  Nursery :!2 

"         "    Orchard 43 

Lacerated  Roots 53 

Low  System'of  Pruning 00 

Long  Wait 08 

Lemons 81 

"      —Importations 82 

—Propagation  and  Culture..  82-85 

—Report  of  Committee  on ,s2 

u      — Analyses S3 

"      —Tests S3 

"      —Budding  on  Orange  Stock 85 

"      —Budded  Varieties 81 

— Lisbon =£ 

— Preparing  for  Market 8u 

— Sulphuring s7 

— Curing s7 

Lemon  Peel  Scale.... <>5 

Lisbon  Lemon 80 

Limes ..  s«» 


Lands  .....................................   n 

Mesas  ...................................................   12 

Maltese  Blood  Oranges  .........................  22 

Mediterranean  Sweet  Oranges  ..............  21 

Mandarin  (  )  ranges  ................................  22 

Moisture—  Danger  of  Too  Much  ...........  :;o 

Marking  Trees  ....................................  -i:j 

Methods  Established  of  Laying  oil'  .....  -i:: 

Misnomer  Corrected  .............................  4s 

Mesa  Irrigation  ....................................  .',«» 

Mulching—  Propagating  Boxes  ............  itO 

"         —Orchard  ..............................  :.<> 

Manures  at  Hand  .................................  (»3 

Markets  for  Fruit  .................................  7:i 


uan  Orange  .............................  22 

Nursery  -Planting  ...............................  :;i 

"      —  T^ocation  of  ...........................  ::i 

—  (ieneral  Requirements  ..........  :;2 

"      —Taking  Trees  from  ................  51 

Nnniborof  Trees  to  Acre—  Square  ........  40 

"        "        "      "     "     —Quincunx  ...   is 

"•       "         '*       "      "     —  Sftptupli*  .....  51 

New  Growth  .........................................  54 

Numbering  Orangea  .............................  72 


INDEX. 


vn 


PAQB 

Observations  to  Begin  With  .................     1 

Objects  and;Advantaijesof  Propagating 
House  ................................................  :>'° 

outcome  of  Propagation  .......................  •"•! 

original  JUids  .......................................  :!s 

orange  On-hard—  Location  ...................  40 

Over  Irrigation  ....................................  «>~ 

old/Way  of  Irrigating  ..........................  ">s 

orange  Treo  in  Bearing  ........................  <>'•> 

Overbear  —  Tendency  to  ........................  '»!» 


Proiit  of  Orange  Culture  ...................  --Hi 

'apcr  Kind  St.  Michael  Orange  .............  22 

'uinalo  Orange  ................................  22-80 

'ropagation  of  Oranges  ........................  -7 

'ropagating  House  ..............................  -•' 

'reparing  Land  ....................................  41 

Planting  Nursery  .................................  33 

Planting  an  Orchard  .............................  53 

Planting  Chain  ....................................  44 

"  "      lor  Quincunx  ................  47 

"        Board  .....................................  53 

Puddling  Trees  ..................  .  .................  52 

Periods  of  Growth  ................................  51 

Pruning  Nursery  ......................  ->  ..........  34 

44        Bud  Sprout  ..............................  38 

44        Additional,  Planted  Trees  ........  54 

44    —Objects  ....................................  5U 

44    —Two  Systems  ...........................  GO 

Plowing  Land  ............  '  ........................  42 

44        Orchard  .................................  55 

Poison  for  Gophers  ..............................  04 

Props  ....................................................  70 

Packing  Season  .....................................  71 

Picking,  Packing  and  Shipping  ...........  70 

Picker—  The  Best  .................................  71 

Packing  ................................................  71 

Packing  Boxes  ...................  .  .................  72 

Preservation  of  Fruit  ...........................  70 

Pergande's  Oran  ge  Scale  ......................  05 

Quincunx  System  ................................  47 

44        —Misapplication  of  Term  ...  40 

Retrospect  of  Orange  Culture  ..............     2 

Riverside  Navel  Orange  ........................  21 

Room  for  Access  and  Working  Nursery  32 
Rebud/ling  .....................  ......................  3s 

Rocks—  Look  Out  For  ...........................  40 

Rectangle—  Establishing  .......................  44 

Rules  for  Computing  No.  of  Trees..  4(>-4S~51 
Rules  for  Pruning  ................................  <;i 

Roots—  Lacerated  .................................  5:5 

Rabbits  ...  ..<;.'> 


TAKF: 

lied  Scalo <>'> 

Ripening — Time  of 70 

Rejuvenating  Old  Trees 71 

Red  Scale !»l 

4»        u     of  Florida !'l 

Remedies  for  St-ale !>7 

Status  of  Orange  Industry 13 

Statistics  of  Orange  Groves 14 

Striker,  The 2s 

Seeds,  Orange 2S 

44      Extracting 28 

Stamper,  A. 2«.» 

Sprinkling  Propagating  Boxes 2U 

Stock— Condition  for  Budding 3U 

44    — Age  for  Budding 3(> 

"    Cutting  and  Inserting  Bud 37 

Systems  of  Arranging,  Three 45 

Square  System 45 

Septuple  System 48-50 

Soil  for  Propagating 27 

44     "    Nursery 32 

''     "    Orange  Orchard 40 

1  *    —Preparation  for  Nursery 32 

44    — Condition  for  Balling 52 

Standard  Lowered  by  Repeated  Bud- 
ding   38 

Smut  on  Orange  Trees -. fi<> 

Sprayer. 07 

Sorting  Fruit 71 

Staking  — Square,    Quincunx,    Septu- 
ple   44-47-50 

Selecting  Trees 12 

Seasons— Various  for  Transplanting 51 

Sacking  Trees 52 

Settling  Earth  in  Planting 54 

Sprouts—Removing 54 

«       —Water , 38 

Suckers 54 

Slow  Starting 55 

Sub-Irrigation : 58 

Squirrels (55 

Squirrel  Exterminators 65 

Scale  Insects.... <J5 

Seedling  Trees— When  They  Yield 08 

Seedlings— Productive  Capacity 70 

Shipping  Fruit 73 

Sicily  Lemons. 82 

Sweet  Rind  Lemons 8(> 

Soft  Orange  Scale 95 

Spraying  Trees 07 

Thin-Skinned  St.  Michael  Orange 22 

Tangerine  Orange 22 


Vlll 


INDEX, 


Topography  of  Nursery ."!2 

Time  to  Begin  Clearing 42 

"    for  Planting  Seeds 27 

"      "    Budding :K 

"    Lout  in  Planting 54 

"    of  Pruning 61 

Twine  for  Budding 86 

Tying  Stocks :;7 

Tiding  Over  the  Long  Wait 68 

Tendency  to  Overbear •><» 

Thinning  Frnit 6<» 

"  "    —Shortcut 70 

Trees— Selecting 42 

11    —Good  Way  to  Judge 13 

Trimming  Trees  Before  Transplanting.  .".7 

Transplanting— Three  Method* 57 

Thumb  Pruning 61 

Traps  for  Gophers 60 

Triangular  Arrangement 50 


Unnecessary  Stakes,  Pull  up 48 

Viu'foti*'*  °f  Oranges 23 

"         —  Designating -*>4 

"Wilson's  Best  Orange 22 

WolfskillV  •'          "       22 

Weeding  Propagating  I'»ox«'s 31 

Widney  Transplanter 33 

Weeds — Nursery  Free  From 31 

Word  to  the  Wise 30 

Water  for  Orange  Orchard 40 

Winds 40 

Washing  Trees oi-GO-DT 

Wrapping  Stocks 04 

Water  Sprouts 54 

White  Scale «>« 

Working,  Watching  and  Waiting 67 

When  Budded  Trees  Yield GS 

u      Seedling    "         '*     68 


PART  I. 

THE  SUBJECT  GENERALLY  DISCUSSED. 


THE  ORANGE, 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA, 


CHAPTER  I. 

A  FEW.OBSERVATIONS  TO  BEGIN  WITH. 


There  is  that  about  the  cultivation  of  the 
orange  which  attracts  people.  Call  it  a 
glamour  or  what  you  will,  the  fact  re- 
mains that  many  who  have  hardly  given 
a  second  thought  to  horticulture  their 
lives  long,  seeing  the  orange  tree,  fall  be- 
neath its  spell,  and  become  henceforth  its 
most  ardent  devotees;— toiling  for  it, 
spending  their  money  for  it,  waiting  long 
and  patiently  for  it,  and  even  undergoing 
privations  that  they  may  possess  it.  I  do 
not  know  that  this  subtle  influence  is 
capable  of  analysis;  I  only  know  that  it 
exists.  But  sometimes  in  thinking  upon 
this  subject  the  fancy  has  struck  me  that 
the  orange  tree  knows  very  well  how  to 
gauge  a  man— has  the  faculty,  so  to  speak, 
of  approaching  him  on  every  side  at  once. 

Is  he  a  lover  of  the  beautiful?  Then  he 
must  be  delighted  with  its  trim  body  and 
symmetrical  branches;  its  dark  evergreen 
foliage,  with  the  yellowish  new  growth 
peeping  out  a-top;  its  bloom  that  rivals 
the  tuberose  in  delicacy  and  fragrance; 
its  fruit  like  apples  of  gold  in  pictures  of 
silver. 

Has  lie  a  fancy  for  out-door  life?  The 
tree  invites  him  to  share  with  it  the  fresh 
air  and  sunshine. 

Does  he  possess  the  true  horticultural 
instinct?— does  he  like  to  see  things  grow 
and  make  them  grow?  The  orange  re- 
wards him  doubly  for  every  attention  he 
bestows. 


Does  his  grosser  nature  crave  the  good 
things  of  this  world?  No  fruit  is  more- 
luscious. 

And  iinally,  is  there,  underlyi»g  the- 
poetry,  the  industry,  the  skill,  the-  appe- 
tite of  the  man,  a  shade— just  a  shadfe— of" 
cupidity?  There  the  orange  tree  tou«lies» 
him  again. 

You  see  it  has  measured  him  very>accu^ 
rately ;  it  knows  his  strong  points  andJhis 
weak  points;  it  averages  him  and  takes 
him  for  what  he  is  worth i  His  own  wife 
couldn't  have  done  the  thing  better. 

In  most  parts  of  the  United  States  the 
tendency  of  population  is  toward  thecity^ 
Not  only  does  the  farmer's  boy  leave  thfr 
country  to  seek  out  the  coveted  clerksbipy 
but  the  farmer  himself,  arrived  at  a  com^ 
fortable  affluence,  is  often  disposed  to 
move  into  town,  either  on  the  pretext  of 
giving  the  children  a  better  schooling,  or 
that  he  may  engage  in  trade,  or  because 
the  farm  labors  and  cares  are  too  arduous 
for  his  years.  In  California  the  move- 
ment is  in  the  opposite  direction.  People 
go  from  the  city  to  the  country.  Our  fruit 
colonies  are  filled  up  with  retired  pros- 
fessional  and  business  men.  In  some  in- 
stances they  are  men  that  have  adopted 
farming  as  a  sanitary  measure;  but  again, 
many  are  to  be  fonnd  in  their  very  prime 
and  vigor  who  lead  this  life  purely  as  » 
matter  of  choice.  Some  of  them,  possessed 
of  wealth,  education  and  refinement,  seefc 


THE  ORANGE; 


the  country  for  the  delights  nowhere  else 
to  be  found,  surrounding  themselves 
there  with  all  the  elegancies  of  a  city 
home.  And  if  upon  occasion  the  rich 
man  choose  to  pull  off  his  coat  and  bear 
the  brnnt  of  toil,  who  shall  say  that  he 
will  not  enjoy  his  dinner  the  better  and 
sleep  the  sounder  o'  nights  thereafter? 

The  field  pros  es  inviting  to  people  of  all 
classes  and  condition*.  The  young  man, 
just  starting  out  to  make  his  way  in  the 
world,  cultivate*  his  trees  and  vines  along- 
side the  superannuated  minister;  and 
across  the  way  is  the  farm  of  a  lady  who 
quit  school-teaching  because  she  tired  of 
its  drudgery.  Many  men  who  continue 
in  business  or  professional  practice  in 
town  have  their  villas  in  the  suburbs,  or 
their  country  homes  of  easy  access,  where 
they  live  beneath  their  own  vine  and  fig 
tree,  and  cultivate  their  own  orange. 
And  if  long-time  residents  are  thus  drawn 
a^ay  from  I  he  city,  attracted  by  the 
charm  of  out-door  life  and  the  pleasure 


of  horticulture  in  this  semi-tropical  cli- 
mate, what  wonder  that  many  who  come 
from  the  snow-bound  East  and  North  are 
captivated  and  impelled  in  the  same  di- 
rection! 

Orange  culture  must  continue  as  it  has 
begun,  an  industry  suited  to  the  most  in- 
telligent and  refined  peoplo.  It  is  better 
adapted  to  small  farms  than  large.  It 
produces  better  results  under  the  eye  and 
hand  of  the  master  than  when  dele- 
gated to  hired  labor.  As  it  requires  both 
skill  and  industry,  it  gives  healthful  oc- 
cupation to  the  mind  as  well  as  the  body. 
While  the  growing  of  an  orange  orchard 
involves  something  of  an  investment, 
supplemented  by  several  years  of  waiting, 
and  no  small  amount  of  labor  and  care, 
the  reward  at  last  is  ample.  If  ono  elect 
to  bridge  over  the  waiting  and  work  by 
purchasing  a  grove  already  in  bearing,  ho 
will  have  to  pay  pretty  good  wages  to  tho 
man  that  built  tho  bridge. 


CHAPTER  II. 


A  RETROSE'ECT,  AND  A 

Will  it  pay  to  raise  oranges?  Yes,  and 
no.  It  will  pay  to  raise  good  fruit;  it  will 
not  pay  to  raise  poor.  Simple  as  this 
proposition  appears  when  reduced  to 
print,  it  has  taken  a  good  many  of  us 
here  in  California  a  long  lime  to  find  it 
out.  While  experience  has  already  dem- 
onstrated that  this  survival  of  the  fittest 
is  inevitable,  we  will  yet  be  compelled  to 
acknowledge  that  it  is  reasonable  and 
just.  The  time  was,  and  not  so  long  ago 
either,  when  many  of  our  people  rushed 
into  orange  growing  as  they  would  have 
rushed  into  a  speculation  in  stocks.  Car- 
ried away  by  the  prospect  of  great  re- 
wards, they  engaged  in  the  industry 
Llindly  and  recklessly;— planted  orchards 
in  localities  not  at  all  suited  to  them; 
j  lauted  scrubby  or  infested  trees;  planted 
beyond  their  means;  planted  without  a 
knowledge  of  orange  growing,  and  aome- 
tam's  with  no  natural  taste  for  horticul- 


QUESTION  ANSWERED. 

hire;  planted,  planted,  planted  anywhere, 
anyhow,  anything,  if  only  they  might 
possess  themselves  of  an  orange  grove. 

Taking  advantage  of  this  furor,  the 
Tew  nurserymen  that  carried  citrus  stocks 
put  their  prices  up  to  a  dollar  or  two  a 
tree,  sold  out,  got  rich.  Then  the  frenzy 
of  speculation  extended  to  tho  propaga- 
tion of  orange  seeds  for  relays  of  nur- 
series, and  a  wider  extension  of  planta- 
tions. Nursery  projects  were  inaugurated, 
ranging  through  eyery  degree  from  the 
hundred-acre  joint  stock  enterprise  to  tho 
row  of  oyster  cans  which  materfcnnittfas 
established  in  the  back  yard  to  augment 
the  family  income.  From  this  planting 
came  trees  that  were  good,  bad  and  in- 
different, of  course,  but  tho  average  was, 
if  possible,  worse  than  tho  preceding  sup- 
ply. And  when  this  heterogeneous  stock 
was  fairly  on  the  market,— then  the  del- 
uge; or  rather,  tho  contrary. 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


The  dry  season  of  1S7U-7  caino  on,  fol- 
lowed by  the  wave  of  hard  times  which 
swept  across  the  country.  People  who 
had  planted  on  insufficient  capital  were 
the  first  to  feel  the  pressure.  Many  were 
obliged  to  surrender  their  places.  Joint- 
stock  nursery  projects  failed.  Some  nur- 
serymen sold  out,  or  wore  closed  out,  and 
left  the  country.  Thus  the  furor  of  orange 
planting  received  a  check.  Nursery  stock 
being  of  slow  sale,  began  to  fall  under 
the  operation  of  the  law  of  the  survival  of 
the  fittest.  Most  of  the  orange  orchards 
already  planted  were  too  valuable  to  be 
abandoned,  no  matter  what  the  fate  of  the 
planter  might  be,  so  somebody  stopped  in 
to  carry  them  forward.  Thus  it  was  that, 
through  all  the  times  of  depression  and 
discouragement,  the  industry  itself  went 
steadily  and  surely  forward.  The  un- 
precedented frosts  which  occurred  in  the 
winter  of  1879-SO,  gave  a  rude  awakening 
to  some  people  who  planted  in  low,  cold 
places.  Not  only  was  the  nursery  stock 
frosted  to  the  ground,  but  in  many  in- 
stances five  and  six-year-old  trees  wore 
destroyed.  The  devastation  among  lem- 
ons and  limes  was  oven  greater  than 
among  oranges.  These  frosts  demon- 
strated that  there  were  certain  localities 
in  this  country  not  at  all  adapted  to  orange 
culture.  Some  people,  a  little  more  fortu- 
nate in  their  locations,  managed  to  weath- 
er through  the  cold*  year,  and  oven  two  or 
three  cold  years  afterwards,  but  for  them 
there  still  remained  a  rude  awakening 
when  they  found  that  their  trees,  having 
reached  the  bearing  age,  were  capable  of 
producing  only  an  inferior  quality  of  fruit. 

The  season  of  1882-3  was  the  most  de- 
pressing for  the  orange  industry  that  we 


have  ever  known.  The  trees  set  unusu- 
ally full,  and  this  alone  had  a  tendency  to 
dwarf  the  fruit  and  detract  from  its  good 
qualities.  Then  there  were  late  frosts  so 
severe  that  some  of  the  fruit  was  nipped, 
and  its  juices  injured  or  totally  destroyed. 
When  the  market  opened  the  weather 
was  cold  and  rainy,  and  people  were  in  no 
mood  for  eating  sour  fruit.  Prices  went 
down.  Some  producers  and  dealers  who 
shipped  inferior  oranges,  in  spite  of  the 
unfavorable  outlook,  found  that  they  had 
their  trouble  for  their  pains  and  a  freight 
bill  to  settle  besides.  Then  it  was  that 
some  superficial  people  began  to  inquire, 
"Will  orange  growing  pay?"  "Haven't 
we  been  deluded  all  this  time  in  thinking 
it  a  remunerative  industry?" 

Those  who  got  started  right ;  who  plant- 
ed on  high,  warm,  mellow  soils;  whotook 
good  care  of  their  trees,  and  followed 
orange  growing  as  an  industry,  not  a 
speculation,  are  the  ones  who  suffered  no 
loss  through  the  time  of  depression,  and 
who  are  now  firmly  grounded  in  the  belief 
that  orange  growing  pays.  Last  season 
while  the  average  oranges  of  the  lower 
valley  were  going  at  a  dollar  a  box,  and  a 
slow  sale  at  that;  while  many  trees  hung 
full  of  little  fruit,  not  salable  at  any  price, 
I  talked  with  an  orange  grower  of  Pasa- 
dena, who  was  sending  off  his  large, 
luscious  Washington  or  Riverside  Navels, 
and  realizing  therefor  $3.50  to  §4  a  box,— 
"And  if  I  had  a  hundred  thousand  boxes," 
he  said,  "I  could  sell  every  one  of  them 
at  these  prices.  Will  orange  growing 
pay?  Well,  I  rather  think  it  will.  It  is 
to-day  the  best  enterprise  a  man  can  en- 
gage in." 


CHAPTER  III. 

ANTIQUITY  OF  THE  CITRUS  FAMILY. 


Over  fifty  years  ago  Gallesio  wrote,  in 
French,  a  learned  work  on  "Citrus  Cul- 
ture," which,  in  more  recent  times,  the 
Horticultural  Society  of  Florida  translated 
and  published  in  English.  Both  original 
und  translation  are  now  out  of  print,  and 


are  only  to  be  found  in  treasured  collec- 
tions. From  this  work  I  am  able  to  glean 
some  curious  facts,  as  well  as  some  very 
ingenious  and  erudite  surmises  about  the 
earliest  record  of  the  citrus  family. 
Galleseo  holds  that  the  lemon  and  or- 


THE  OKANGE; 


ange  originated  in  Southern  Asia,  and  in 
that  portion  of  the  East  Indies  lying  be- 
yond the  Ganges.  Up  to  and  including 
the  earlier,  centuries  of  the  Empire  of  the 
Caesars,  these  fruits  had  not  been  brought 
from  those  climates  where  they  were  in- 
digenous. They  grew  without  culture  in 
the  native  groves,  the  hand  of  man  not 
having  yet  appropriated  them  as  orna- 
ments for  his  garden.  The  fruit  was  even 
unknown  to  the  Roiryms,  a  people  who  in 
the  age  of  their  triumph  sought  out  every 
luxury  which  ihe  world  of  their  conquest 
afforded.  Pliny,  in  the  account  of  his  In- 
dian voyage,  makes  no  mention  or  either 
orange  or  citron.  Other  writers  on  this  re- 
gion, such  as  Nearchus,  one  of  Alexander's 
captains,  and  Arianus  and  lambolus  are 
equally  silent  on  the  subject  of  citrus 
fruits. 

To  the  Arabs  who,  under  the  leadership 
of  Mohammed,  extended  their  conquests 
into  Asia  and  Africa  much  faster  than  any 
people  before  them,  belongs  the  credit  of 
first  disseminating  the  orange.  They  ac- 
climatized the  trees  in  Syria,  Africa,  Spain 
and  some  European  islands.  Occupying 
a  position  advantageous  and  favorable  to 
the  commercial  spirit  and  love  of  luxury 
which  succeeded  the  fury  of  conquest,  the 
Arabs  naturally  learned  of  and  appreci- 
ated many  exotic  plants  peculiar  to  the 
regions  they  had  conquered  or  to  adjoin- 
ing countries.  They  were  fond  of  medi- 
cine and  agriculture,  in  which  they  espe- 
cially excelled.  To  them  we  owe  the 
knowledge  of  many  plants,  perfumes  alid 
Oriental  aromatics,  such  as  musk,  nut- 
megs, mace  and  cloves.  In  their  medi- 
cines we  for  the  first  time  hear  of  the 
chemical  change  known  as  distillation, 
which  appears  to  have  originated  in  the 
desire  to  steal  from  nature  the  perfumes 
of  flowers  and  aroma  of  fruits.  It  is  cer- 
tain that  the  orange  was  known  to  their 
physicians  from  the  commencement  of 
the  fourth  century  of  the  Hegira.  The 
Damascene  has  given  in  his  Antidotary  a 
recipe  for  making  oil  of  oranges  and  their 
seeds  (oleum  de  citrangata  et  oleum  de  cit- 
ranguloru  m  seminibus).  Another  Arabian 
physician,  Avicenna,  employed  the  juice 
of  the  bigarade  (bitter  orange)  in  a  medi- 
cinal syrup  which  he  called  alkedere. 
The  orange  was  from  the  first  valued  not 


alone  for  the  beauty  of  its  foliage  and 
quality  of  its  fruit  and  for  its  medicinal 
uses,  but  also  for  the  aroma  of  its  flowers, 
of  which  essences  were  made. 

Abd-Allatif,  an  Arabian  writer  of  the 
twelfth  century  of  our  era,  says:  "The 
round  citron  (otrodj  modawar)  was  brought 
from  India  since  the  year  300  of  the  Hegira 
(A.  D.  922).  It  was  first  sowed  in  Oman 
(part  of  Arabia),  from  thence  carried  to 
Irok  (part  of  old  Persia)  and  Syria,  be- 
coming very  common  in  the  houses  ol 
Tarsus  and  other  frontier  cities  of  Syria, 
at  Antioch,  upon  the  coasts  of  Syria,  in 
Palestine  and  in  Egypt.  One  knew  it  not 
before,  but  it  lost  much  of  its  sweet  odor 
and  fine  color  which  it  had  in  India,  be- 
cause it  had  not  the  same  climate,  soil  and 
all  that  which  is  peculiar  to  that  country." 

The  lemon  appeared  perhaps  a  little  la- 
ter in  these  different  countries,  for  we  see 
no  mention  of  it  either  in  the  Damascene 
or  in  Ayicenna,  but  its  description  meets 
the  eye  in  works  of  Arabian  writers  of  the 
twelfth  century,  especially  Ebn  Beitar, 
who  gave  it  an  article  in  his  dictionary  of 
simple  remedies. 

The  Arabs  invaded  Sicily  about  the  be- 
ginning of  the  ninth  century,  and  planted 
the  orange  tree  in  that  island.  The  citrine 
apples  of  Leon  d'Ostia  date  from  1002,  and 
were  regarded  as  objects  rare  and  precious 
enough  to  be  offered  as  gifts  to  prince*. 
Nicolas  Specialis,  in  his  history  of  Sicily, 
written  in  the  fourteenth  century,  recount - 
i  n g  the  devastation  by  the  army  of  the  Duke 
of  Calabria,  in  1383,  in  the  vicinity  of  Paler- 
mo, says  that  it  did  not  spare  even  the 
trees  of  sour  apples  (pommes  acides), 
called  by  the  people  arangi,  which  had 
adorned,  since  old  time,  the  royal  palace 
of  Cubba. 

After  the  Arabians,  the  Crusaders  were 
the  next  agency  for  the  extension  of  citrus 
culture.  They  entered  Asia  Minor  as  con- 
querors, and  thence  spread  themselves  as 
traders  into  all  parts  of  Asia.  They  were 
not  mere  soldiers,  but  brave  men  drawn 
from  their  families  :by  religious  enthusi- 
asm, and  who,  in  consequence,  would 
hold  fast  to  their  country  and  their  homes. 
They  could  not  see  without  coveting  these 
charming  trees  which  embellish  the  vicin- 
ity of  Jerusalem,  with  whose  exquisite 


ITS  CULTUKE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


fruits  nature  had  favored  the  climates  of 
Asia. 

It  was  at  this  time  that  Europe  enriched 
its  orchards  by  many  of  these  trees,  and 
that  the  French*  princes  carried  into  their 
country  the  damson,  the  St.  Catharine  (a 
pear),  the  apricot  from  Alexandria,  and 
other  species  indigenous  to  those  regions. 
Sicilians,  Genoese  and  Provencals  trans- 
ported to  Palermo,  St.  Remo  and  Hyeres 
lemon  and  orange  trees.    Jaques  de  Vitry, 
a  historian  of  the  thirteenth  century,  who 
had  been  in  Palestine  with  the  Crusaders, 
and  who  accordingly  speaks  ex  cathedra, 
has  this  to  say  of  the  subject:    "  Besides 
many  trees  cultiyated   in   Italy,  Genoa, 
France  and  other  parts  of  Europe,  we  find 
here  (in  Palestine)  species  peculiar  to  the 
I'ountry,  and  of  which  some  are  sterile 
and  others  bear  fruit.    Here  are  trees  bear- 
ing very  beautiful  apples— the  color  of  cit- 
ron— upon  which  is  distictly  seen  the  mark 
of  a  man's  tooth.    This  has  given  them 
the   common    name    of  pomme   d'Adam 
(Adam's    apple);    others    produced    sour 
fruit,  of  a  disagreeable  taste,  which  are 
called  limons.    Their  juice  is  used  for  sea- 
soning food,  because  it  is  cool,  pricks  the 
palate,  and  provokes  appetite.     *      *      * 
There  is  a  species  of  cedar  called  cedre 
'maritime,  whose  plant  is  small  but  pro- 
ductive, giving  very  fine  fruits  as  large  as 
a  man's  head.    Some  call  them  citrons,  or 
pommes  citrons.    These  fruits  are  formed 
of  a  triple  substance,  and  have  three  dif- 
ferent tastes.    The  first  is  warm,  the  sec- 
ond is  temperate,  the  last  is  cold.    Some 
say  that  this  is  the  fruit  of  which  God 
commanded  in  Leviticus:    *  Take  you  the 
first  day  of  the  year  the  fruit  of  the  finest 
tree.'    We   see  in  this   country  another 
species  of  citrine  apples,  borne  by  small 
trees,  and  of  which  the  cool  part  is  less  of 
a  disagreeable  and  acid  taste;   these  the 
natives  call  orenges." 

From  Naples  and  Sicily  the  orange  and 
lemon  trees  must  have  been  carried  into 
the  Roman  States,  into  Sardinia  and  Cor- 
sica and  to  Malta.  The  islands  of  the 
Archipelago  first  received  them,  because, 
belonging  in  great  part  to  the  Genoese  and 
Venetians,  it  is  probable  they  were  the  in- 
termediate points  whence  the  Crusaders 
of  Genoa  and  Venice  transported  the 
plants  to  their  homes. 


The  use  of  the  lemon  as  seasoning  for 
food,  brought  from  Palestine  to  Liguria, 
to  Provence  and  to  Sicily,  penetrated  to 
the    interior  of   Italy  and    France.    The 
taste  for  confections  was  propagated  in 
Europe  with  the  introduction  of  sugar, 
and  this  delicate  food  became  at  once  a 
necessary  article  to  men  in  easy  circum- 
stances, and  a  luxury  upon  all  tables.    It 
was  above  all  as  confections  that  the  Ag- 
rumi  (lemons)   entered   into   commerce, 
and  we  see  by  the  records  of  Savona  that 
they  were  sent  into  cold  parts  of  Italy, 
where  people  were  very  greedy  for  them. 
After   having  cultivated    these  species 
for  the  use  made  of  their  fruits,  they  soon 
cultivated  them  as  ornaments  for  the  gar- 
den.   The  monks  began  to  fill  with  these 
trees  the  courts  of  their  monasteries,  in 
climates  suited  to  their  continual  growth, 
and  soon  one  found  no  convent  not  sur- 
rounded by  them.    Indeed,  the  courts  and 
gardens  of  these  houses  show  us  now  trees 
of  great  age,  and  it  is  said  that  the  old 
tree,  of  which  we  now  see  a  register  in  the 
court   of   the   convent   of   St.  Sabina  at 
Rome,  was  planted  by  St.  Dominick  about 
the   year   1200.    This  fact  has   no  other 
foundation  than  tradition,  but  this  tradi- 
tion, preserved  for  many  centuries,  not 
only  among  the  monks  of  the  convent, 
but  also  among  the  clergy  of  Rome,  is  re- 
ported by  Augustin  Gallo,  who,'  in  1559, 
speaks  of  this  orange  as  a  tree  existing 
since  time  immemorial.    If  we  refuse  to 
credit  its  planting  to  St.  Dominick,  we  must 
at  least  refer  it  to  a  period  soon  after — that 
is,  to  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century,  at 
the  latest. 

In  their  spread  among  the  most  civil- 
ized peoples  of  the  earth  the  orange  and 
lemon  finally  penetrated  into  the  colder 
latitudes,  and  perhaps  we  owe  to  the  desire 
of  enjoying  their  flowers  and  fruit  the  in- 
vention of  hot-houses,  afterwards  called  in 
France  orangeries.  This  agricultural  lux- 
ury was  unknown  in  Europe  before  the 
introduction  of  the  citron  tree.  In  the 
fourteenth  century  people  had  begun  to 
erect  buildings  designed  to  create  for  ex- 
otic plants  an  artificial  climate.  But  at 
the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century 
orangeries  passed  from  king's  gardens  to 
those  of  the  people,  chiefly  in  countries 
where  they  were  not  compelled  to  heat 


THE  ORANGE; 


them  by  fire.  About  the  middle  of  the 
seventeenth  century  this  luxury  was  very 
general,  and  we  see  distinguished  by  their 
magnificence  and  gradeur  the  orangeries 
of  the  Farnese  family  at  Parma;  of  the 
Cardinal  Xantes,  Aldobrandiui  and  Pio 
at  Rome;  of  the  Elector  Palatine  at  Hei- 
delberg; and  of  Louis  XIII  in  Franco. 
In  all  the  civilized  parts  of  Europe  the 
orangerie  is  now  considered  an  embellish- 
ment necessary  to  all  country  seats,  and 
houses  of  pleasure. 

In  nomenclature  oranges  and  lemons 
had  a  most  difficult  time  in  establishing 
themselves.  The  lemon  tree,  first  brought 
into  Egypt  as  a  variety  of  citron,  was  for 
a  long  time  designated  by  European  wri- 
ters under  the  generic  name  of  citrus,  al- 
though in  Italy  and  the  south  of  France 
the  people  had  known  it  from  the  begin- 
ning by  the  name  of  limon.  We  find  in 
botanical  works  citrus  limon  or  mala  h- 
monia  and  sometimes  citrus  medica. 

la  Arabia  the  word  first  applied  to  the 
orange  was  arindj.  This  in  Syria  was 
modified  to  narengi. 

The  orange  appeared  in  Italy  under  the 
name  of  orenges,  which  the  people  modi- 
fied, according  to  the  pronunciations  of 
the  different  sections,  into  aringo,  naran- 
20,  aranzctj  aranzo,  citrone,  cetrangolo, 
melaranco,  melangofo,  arancio.  The  Pro- 
vengals  also  received  this  tree  under  the 
name  of  orenges,  arid  have  changed  it 
from  time  to  time,  in  different  provinces, 


into  arrangi,  airange,  orenge,  and  finally,. 

ORANGE. 

During  several  centuries  the  Latin  au- 
thors found  themselves  embarrassed  in 
designating  this  fruit,  which  had  no  name 
in  their  language.  The  first  who  spoke  of 
it  used  a  phrase  indicating  its  character- 
istics, accompanying  it  with  the  popular 
name  of  arangi,  Latinized  into  orenges, 
orangias,  arantium.  Jaques  de  Vitry 
calls  oranges  poma  cftrina,  adding,  "The 
Arabs  call  them  orenges."  Nicolas  Spe- 
cialis  designates  them  as  acri  pomomm 
arborcSj  observing  that  the  people  call 
them  arangias.  Mathews  Silvaticus  first 
gave  to  the  orange  the  name  of  citrangu- 
lum.  This  last  designation  was  received 
in  the  language  of  science  for  more  than  a 
century.  Finally,  little  by  little,  were  ad- 
opted the  vulgar  Latinized  names  in  use 
among  other  writers,  such  as  arangium,. 
arancium,  anarantium,  nerantium,  auran- 
tmm,  pomen  aureum. 

The  Greeks  followed  in  the  same  steps. 
They  have  either  Grecianized  the  name  of 
narenge,  which  was  in  use  among  Syrian 
Arabs,  or  they  received  it  from  the  Crusa- 
ders from  the  Holy  Land;  and  have  ad- 
opted it  in  their  language,  calling  itneran- 
zion. 

In  this  day  and  age  we  are  satisfied  to 
call  the  fruit,  in  English  ORANGE  and 
LEMON;  in  French,  orange  and  citron;  in 
German,  orange,  citrone;  in  Spanish,  na- 
ratija,  limon. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

INTRODUCTION  OF  THE  ORANGE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


Father  Palou,  the  historian  of  the  early 
California  Missions,  says; 

"On  the  10th  of  August  [1771]  the  Fa- 
ther Friar  Pedro  Carnbon  and  Father 
Angel  Somera,  guarded  by  ten  soldiers 
with  the  muleteers  and  beasts"  requisite 
to  carry  the  necessaries,  set  out  from  San 
Diego,  and  traveled  northerly  by  the  same 
route  as  the  former  expedition  for  Mon- 
terey had  gone.  After  proceeding  about 
forty  leagues  they  arrived  at  the  river 
called  Temblores  [the  Los  Angeles  river], 
and  while  they  were  in  the  act  of  examin- 


ing the  ground  in  order  to  fix  a  proper 
place  for  the  mission,  a  multitude  of  In- 
dians, all  armed  and  headed  by  two  cap- 
tains, presented  themselves,  setting  up 
horrid  yells,  and  seeming  determined  to 
oppose  the  establishment  of  the  mission. 
The  Fathers,  fearing  that  war  would  en- 
sue, took  out  a  piece  of  cloth  with  the 
image  of  our  Lady  de  los  Dolores,  and 
held  it  up  to  the  barbarians.  This  was  no 
sooner  done  than  the  whole  were  quiet, 
being  subdued  by  the  fight  of  this  most 
precious  image;  and  throwing  on  the 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


ground  their  bows  and  arrows,  the  two 
captains  came  running  with  great  haste  to 
lay  the  beads  which  they  brought  about 
their  necks  at  the  feet  of  the  sovereign 
queen,  as  proof  of  their  entire  regard; 
manifesting  at  the  same  time  that  they 
wished  to  be  at  peace  with  us.  They  then 
informed  the  whole  of  the  neighborhood 
of  what  had  taken  place;  and  the  people 
in  large  numbers,  men,  women  and  chil- 
dren, soon  came  t©  see  the  Holy  Virgin; 
bringing  food  which  they  put  before  her, 
thinking  she  required  to  eat  as  others.  In 
this  manner  the  Gentiles  of  the  mission  of 
San  Gabriel  were  so  entirely  changed  that 
they  frequented  the  establishment  without 
reserve,  and  hardly  knew  how  much  to 
manifest  their  pleasure  that  the  Spaniards 
had  come  to  settle  in  their  country.  Un- 
der these  favorable  auspices  the  Fathers 
proceeded  to  found  a  mission  with  the  ac- 
customed ceremonies;  and  celebrated  the 
first  mass  under  a  tree  on  the  nativity  of 
the  Virgin,  the  eighth  of  September,  1771." 

In  the  order  of  establishment  San  Ga- 
briel was  fourth  among  the  missions  of 
Upper  California.  By  reason  of  its  rich 
soil  and  abundance  of  water,  and  its  large 
number  of  neophytes  brought  into  service, 
it  soon  advanced  to  the  front  rank  in  pro- 
ductiveness and  wealth. 

At  San  Gabriel  Mission  was  formed  the 
nucleus  of  California  orange-growing.  As 
to  the  time  and  circumstances  of  the  first 
planting,  history  is  silent.  The  archives 
of  the  Mission  church,  which  alone  could 
be  accepted  as  absolute  authority,  are  lost. 
Tradition  even  is  not  much  to  be  relied 
upon  among  that  class  of  people  who  have 
lived  longest  in  and  about  the  Mission. 
An  old  gardener,  whom  the  writer  found 
in  the  Mission  orchard  on  the  occasion  of  a 
recent  visit,  shrugged  his  shoulders  in  the 
aggravating,  non-committal  way  of  his 
race  when  questioned  as  to  the  age  of  the 
trees. 

41  Tienen  multos,  multos  anos,  Senor!" 
They  are  many,  many  years  old,  MI.  I 
don't  know  how  many.  I  think  more 
than  seventy.  He  underestimated  their 
years. 

Father  Bot,  the  priest  of  the  Mission, 
fixes  the  planting  of  the  first  orange  or- 
chard at  about  the  year  1804.  The  present 
church  building  was  erected  in  that  year, 


and,  reasoning  from  analogy,  he  concludes 
that  the  site  of  the  grove  must  have  been 
chosen  with  reference  to  the  building.  He 
thinks  the  trees  were  propagated  from 
seed  brought  from  San  Rafael  in  Lower 
California. 

Col.  J.  J.Warner,  our  "oldest  inhabit- 
ant," settled  in  Los  Angeles  county  in 
1831.  At  the  time  of  his  coming  the  or- 
ange trees  in  the  Mission  garden  were 
twenty-five  or  thirty  years  old  and  had 
long  been  in  bearing.  This  agrees  with 
Father  Bot's  calculation  as  to  the  time  of 
their  planting. 

Three  several  Fathers  Sanchez  admin- 
istered the  affairs  of  San  Gabriel  Mission 
at  different  periods,  and  to  the  first  of 
these,  Father  Tonias,  belongs  the  distinc- 
tion of  introducing  the  orange.  That  he 
had  an  abiding  faith  in  the  success  of  his 
horticultural  venture  is  attested  by  the 
fact  that  he  imported  iron  with  which  to 
enclose  the  orchard.  This  iron,  however, 
was  never  used,  owing  probably  to  the 
death  or  removal  of  the  enterprising 
Padre,  and  after  rusting  in  uselessness  for 
some  years  at  the  Mission,  a  portion  of  it 
was  purchased  by  Don  Luis  Vignes  (1834> 
and  brought  to  the  city  of  Los  Angeles. 
Here  it  was  used  to  enclose  the  second 
orange  orchard  in  the  State.  It  is  said 
that  Don  Luis  procured  from  the  Mission 
thirty-five  large  trees,  which  he  trans- 
planted to  his  place  on  Aliso  street,  near 
the  historic  Aliso  (sycamore)  tree,  from 
which  the  street  derives  its  name.  He  es- 
tablished at  first  a  sort  of  exotic  garden, 
enclosing  his  clump  of  oranges  tightly 
and  roofing  the  space  with  wire-netting. 
Within  the  enclosure  he  kept  a  flock  of 
quail.  Later,  the  Don  increased  the  num- 
ber of  his  trees  until  he  wa»  the  possessor 
of  a  considerable  grove.  But  he  did  not 
follow  his  expensive  method  of  fencing 
and  roofing  throughout. 

Other  orchards  followed.  The  most  no- 
table was  that  of  William  Wolfskill,  plant- 
ed in  the  city  oi  Los  Angeles,  seven  years 
after  that  of  Don  Luis  Vignes.  There  was 
another  four  or  five  miles  north  of  the 
Mission,  known  as  La  Huerta  del  Cuate> 
The  Garden  of  the  Twin,  which,  with  one 
or  two  intermediate  transfers,  finally  pass- 
ed into  the  hands  of  Don  Benito  Wilson  > 


THE  CHANGE; 


"by  whom  it  was  carefully  nurtured  and 
extended  by  new  plantations. 

But  between  the  planting  of  the  original 
orchard  at  the  Mission  San  Gabriel  and 
the  several  groves  above  mentioned  a  long 
period  must  have  transpired  —  perhaps 
twenty  or  twenty-five  years,  during  which 
the  Mission  orchard  was  the  sole  repre- 
sentative of  this  fruit  in  California.  Even 
after  the  extension  of  the  industry,  for 
many  years  oranges  held  no  place  among 
•the  recognized  products  of  the  country. 
Mr.  Alexander  Forbes,  who  wrote  one  of 
the  earliest  works  on  California— a  book 
printed  in  England  in  1835 — cites  wheat, 
maize,  barley,  pease,  beans,  potatoes, 
hemp,  grapes,  olives  and  grasses  as  the 
principal  crops,  but  makes  no  mention  of 
•oranges. 

Ex-Governor  John  G.  Downey,  writing 
•of  the  early  cultivation  of  the  orange,  says: 

"  In  those  days,  though  there  was  plen- 
ty of  energy  and  intelligence  among  the 
Sjwmish  pioneers,  it  was  a  difficult  under- 
taking for  the  ranchero  to  build  a  fence  to 
protect  his  orchard  from  the  multitude  of 
vild  stock  that  surrounded  him,  even  to 
he  door  of  his  pueblo  home.  *  *  * 

"  The  orchard  of  orange  trees  at  San  Ga- 
Oriel  was  scarcely  in  bearing  when  Don 
Luis  Vignes  planted  his  orchard  in  Los 
Angeles.  Next  followed  that  of  William 
Wolfskill,  and  next,  that  of  Don  Manuel 
Requena.  These  little  orchards  were  en- 
•  closed  by  an  adobe  wall,  as  were  those  of 
the  Missions  of  San  Gabriel  and  San  Fer- 
nando. Many  of  the  old  families  followed 
these  examples  by  planting  a  few  trees  in 
their  respective  court-yards.  I  can  safely 
say  there  was  not  a  tree  planted  with  a 
view  to  profit,  and  not  an  orange  sold 
until  long  after  the  advent  of  the  Ameri- 
•cans.  The  fruit  was  cultivated  for  home 
use,  and  for  the  use  of  friends  less  fortu- 
nately situated. 

"  In  the  year  1853  Matthew  Keller  and 
.Dr.  Halsey  obtained  seeds  from  Central 
America  and  Hawaii,  and  planted  nur- 
series. Dr.  Halsey 's  nursery  was  the 
most  extensive.  While  this  plantation 
was  very  young,  the  doctor  was  crossed  in 
*,omr  love  matters,  studied  Andrew  Jack- 
son Davis  more  thoroughly  than  he  did 
Downing,  and  went  off  on  a  spiritual  mis- 
sion East,  leaving  his  nursery  in  care  of 


Judge  I.  S.  K.  Ogier.  The  latter  sold  the 
nursery  for  a  song  to  William  Wolfskill, 
whose  place  was  adjoining,  and  the  or- 
chard now  the  property  of  Miss  Francisca 
Wolfskill  is  the  result.  It  is  a  very  pretty 
property — perhaps  the  largest  bearing  or- 
ange orchard  in  the  United  States.  At 
least  I  have  not  seen  any  as  large  in  Flor- 
ida, Louisiana  or  Cuba.  It  is  a  pleasure 
to  look  at,  is  a  source  of  great  profit,  and 
could  not  be  in  better  hands. 

"  The  orchard  of  Mr.  Wilson  was  once  a 
portion  of  the  Mission  of  San  Gabriel.  In 
the  unconstitutional  sale  of  the  missions 
this  portion  fell  to  Hugo  Reed.  Mr.  Wil- 
son bought  it  in  1852  of  Reed's  widow. 
There  were  then  on  the  place  several 
fruitful  trees,  which  are  still  in  vigorous 
bearing,  and  will  be  for  several  genera- 
tions. Mr.  Wilson  has  industriously  and 
intelligently  added  to  them;  not  at  any 
great  cost,  for  he  raised  his  trees  in  his 
own  nursery,  and  continues  to  raise  them, 
so  that  he  has  them  always  on  hand  with- 
out expense." 

The  orchard  of  William  Wolfskill,  al- 
luded to  above,  was  no  doubt  the  first  that 
was  planted  in  California  with  an  idea  of 
profit.  Mr.  Wolfskill's  neighbors  ridi- 
culed him,  saying  that  he  would  get  no 
fruit  in  his  lifetime.  It  was  a  severe  trial 
of  patience  to  maintain  the  trees  through 
all  the  years  requisite  to  bring  them  into 
bearing,  and  all  that  for  a  mere  experi- 
ment. At  the  same  time  vineyards  of 
three  or  four  years'  growth  were  paying 
handsomely,  with  no  more  labor.  This 
fact  came  near  tipping  the  balance  against 
the  trees,  but  Mr.  Wolfskill's  German  te- 
nacity finally  pievailed,  and  the  tree* 
were  brought  to  fruition.  He  lived  to  en- 
joy his  oranges  for  twenty  years,  and  they 
gave  him,  some  years,  an  income  of  a 
thousand  dollars  an  acre.  The  last  crop 
disposed  of  in  his  lifetime  from  about 
twenty-eight  acres  sold  on  the  trees  for 
$25,000. 

From  1857  to  1862  orange-growing  was 
greatly  checked  by  the  insects,  which 
caused  an  almost  total  failure  of  the  fruit, 
But  in  1862  this  pest  abated,  and  there  was 
a  good  crop.  There  were  then  in  tho 
whole  State  only  about  25,000  trees,  two- 
thirds  of  which  were  in  the  Wolfskill  or- 
chard. 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFOKNIA. 


Since  1862  the  spirit  of  modern  progress 
has  been  infused  into  orange-growing, 
and  the  area  of  plantations  has  increased 
with  marvelous  rapidity.  In  1880  the  en- 
tire number  of  orange  trees  in  the  State 
was  estimated  at  one  million,  a  quarter  of 
which  were  in  bearing.  In  1882  the  bear- 
ing trees  had  increased  to  half  a  million. 
The  ratio  of  increase  for  the  years  1883 
<ind  1884  has  probably  been  fully  as  great, 
and,  at  this  writing,  we  may  say  there  are 
;:i  million  trees  in  the  State  that  are  yield- 
ing oranges. 

The  original  orchard  of  Father  Tomas 
Sanchez,  of  blessed  memory,  still  remains 
hi  the  Mission  garden  at  San  Gabriel.  It 
is  a  decrepit  old  patriarch  still  lingering  to 
witness  the  glory  of  its  tribe.  The  inclo- 
sure  comprises  about  six  acres,  and  it  is 
probable  that  400  trees  constituted  tho 
original  plantation.  Of  this  number  less 
than  thirty  survive.  I  wish  that  I  could 
say  that  these  trees,  now  more  than  eighty 
3'ears  old,  remain  in  a  fair  state  of  preser- 
vation, but  they  do  not.  Few  of  the 
trunks  are  sound.  Some  of  them  appeal- 
half  or  two-thirds  dead,  and  only  a  nar- 
row margin  of  live  bark  and  wood  to  keep 
vigor  in  the  top.  Some  have  a  water- 
sprout  growing  from  the  old  trunk  with 
all  the  thrift  of  youth,  the  sprout  itself  in 
••a  number  of  instances  having  attained  the 
proportions  of  a  tree.  One  of  the  old 
trunks  that  I  measured  showed  a  girth  of 
forty-two  inches  near  the  ground.  Three 
or  four  years  ago  the  old  trees  were 
lopped,  probably  as  a  restorative  measure. 


They  now  boast  new  tops  of  respectable 
dimensions,  but  the  trees  possess  some- 
thing of  a  stubby  appearance,  neverthe- 
less. It  is  a  matter  of  record  that,  before 
the  topping  process,  one  of  the  old  trees 
bore  in  one  season  10,000  oranges.  The 
trees  are  now  bearing  from  the  new 
growth,  and  the  fruit  is  a  good  quality. 
The  spaces  between  the  patriarchs,  which 
were  made  vacant  by  those  that  were 
gathered  to  their  fathers,  have  all  been 
filled  by  younger  trees.  Some  of  these 
replants  are  now  full  grown— probably 
twenty-five  years  old,  and  others  younger. 
The  orchard,  in  the  main,  presents  an  in- 
congruous appearance,  with  young,  mid- 
dle-aged and  old  trees  intermingled.  The 
well-meaning  Father  who  replanted  prob- 
ably did  not  bear  in  mind  the  Scriptural 
injunction  about  putting  new  wine  into 
old  bottles,  and  mending  an  old  garment 
with  new  cloth. 

The  Mission  orchard  and  garden  is 
farmed  out  to  a  tenant  (Mexican),  who 
cares  for  it  and  takes  a  part  of  the  crop 
for  his  pay.  While  the  orchard  is  fairly 
tended  at  present,  it  shows  evidences  of 
great  neglect  in  former  times.  Probably 
its  long  and  eventful  history  has  been  an 
unbroken  succession  of  over  irrigation 
and  under  cultivation.  Hence  the  dis- 
eased condition  of  the  trunks.  Some  of 
the  patriarchs  must  bow  to  the  inevitable 
in  the  course  of  a  few  years.  Others 
promise  to  round  up  their  century  of  ex- 
istence, and  perhaps  more. 


CHAPTER  V. 

A  GLANCE  AT  OUR  ORANGE-GROWING  COUNTRY. 


"All Gaul,"  saysCeesar,  "is  divided  into 
three  parts."  The  same  is  true  of  all 
Southern  California.  But  our  tripartite 
division,  unlike  Csesar's,  is  based  upon 
topography. 

If  you  were  at  the  masthead  of  a  vessel 
-off  the  coast  of  Los  Angeles  county,  you 
might  have  these  three  grand  divisions 
within  your  range  of  vision.  Looking  up 
she  perspective  of  Wilmington  inlet  you 


would  descry  the  low,  half-marshy  coun- 
try behind  Wilmington.  At  the  left  of 
the  view  the  headlands  of  Santa  Monica 
indicate  the  upland  plain  lying  beyond. 
The  mountains  of  the  Coast  Range  form 
the  background  of  this  plain,  and  at  their 
base  you  perceive  there  is  an  irregular, 
sloping  strip  of  land,  forming  the  line  of 
junction  between  the  mountains  and  the 
plain.  This  intermediate  land  here,  as 


10 


THE  ORANGE; 


elsewhere  in  California,  we  designate  by 
the  Spanish  word  mesa,  meaning  table. 

You  have  seen,  then,  from  your  mast- 
head, the  lowlands  of  Wilmington,  the 
uplands  of  Santa  Monica,  and  ihe  mesas 
of  the  Coast  Range.  These  are  types  of 
the  three  natural  divisions  of  our  country. 
Though  comprehended  in  the  same  geo- 
graphical area,  and  often  found  contigu- 
ous, they  still  vary  in  characteristics  of 
soil,  climate  and  productions  as  much  as 
distinctive  countries.  Prof.  Hilgard  says: 

*'  They  are  commonly  distinguished  into 
lands  of  the  first  bench,  or  bottom  lands 
of  the  streams;  lands  of  the  second  bench, 
forming  either  at  the  present  time  or  orig- 
inally a  system  of  terraces  elevated  from 
fifteen  to  twenty-five  feet  above  the  bot- 
tom lands;  and,  finally,  the  mesa  lands, 
lying  at  higher  elevations,  and  with  no 
definite  relation  to  the  present  drainage 
system.  Of  course,  these  distinctions  are 


not  absolutely  maintainable;  the  second 
benches  and  lower  mesa  lands  passing 
into  each  other  imperceptibly,  especially 
on  the  upper  portions  of  the  streams, 
while  again,  in  the  lower  portions  of  the 
same,  the  second  bench  lands  often  lie 
high  enough  to  be  classed  as  mesas.  On- 
tlie  slopes  of  the  mesa  lands  the  soil  of 
the  latter  and  that  of  the  bench  lands  are 
of  course  frequently  commingled." 

I  have  cited  portions  of  Los  Angeles 
county  by  way  of  illustration,  while  spec- 
ifying the  general  characteristics  of  South- 
ern California.  The  principles  which  these 
chapters  are  designed  to  illustrate  apply 
to  all  that  portion  of  California  lying 
south  of  Point  Concepcion.  They  also  ap- 
ply, measurably,  to  all  other  agricultural 
sections  of  the  State,  and  to  all  fruit-grow- 
ing countries  in  the  world,  so  far  as  I  am 
able  to  judge  from  published  reports  at 
my  command. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  LOWLANDS. 


Our  lowlands  may  be  described,  in 
brief,  as  the  troughs  of  the  natural  water- 
sheds. They  occur  in  the  line  of  greatest 
depression  in  the  valleys,  between  moun- 
tain chain  and  mountain  chain,  and  re- 
ceive whatever  surface  drainage  there 
may  be.  Their  principal  source  of  moist- 
ure, however,  is  in  the  subterranean  flow. 
These  lands  abound  in  cienegas — marshy 
flats— and  the  water  is  anywhere  obtaina- 
ble a  few  feet  below  the  surface.  Gener- 
ally speaking,  our  lowlands  are  not  unlike 
the  so-called  "bottoms "of  the  Missouri 
and  Mississippi  rivers.  The  soil  is  a  rich 
loam,  and  in  some  places  quite  sandy. 
Willows  grow  in  dense,  natural  thickets, 
and  cotton  woods  are  occasionally  found. 
Some  sections,  too  damp  and  alkaline  for 
anything  else,  produce  a  species  of  salt 
grass.  Where  the  configuration  insures 
Bufficient  drainage,  these  lands  produce 
amazing  crops  of  corn,  beets,  pumpkins, 
alfalfa,  etc.  Small  grains  are  apt  to  grow 
too  rank  for  the  best  results.  With  proper 
tillage,  the  farmer  may  here  defy  that 


bug-a-boo,  the  California  "dry  year," 
since  the  moisture  to  mature  his  crops  is 
supplied  unfailingly  from  below. 

But  while  this  lowland  belt  excels  in  the 
products  mentioned,  to  the  extent  of  being 
facetiously  dubbed  "our  hog  and  hominy 
country,"  it  is  not  well  adapted  to  horti- 
culture. I  except  apples  and  English  wal- 
nuts, which  thrive  there,  better  perhaps 
than  in  other  localities.  Peach,  pear,  and 
other  deciduous  trees  grow,  but  the  fruit, 
while  frequently  of  great  size,  is  watery 
and  insipid. 

On  such  land  were  doubtless  produced 
those  California  pears  which  Bret  Harte 
stigmatized  as  "great  and  dropsical."  The 
more  shame  to  hint  as  a  quondam  Cali- 
fornian,  for  abusing  our  fruits  without 
'discrimination!  But  many  people  have 
fallen  into  the  same  error;  hence  the 
widely  prevalent  belief  that  California 
does  not  produce  fine-flavored  deciduous 
fruits.  Those  ponderous  lowland  pears 
are  designed  to  feast  the  eyed,  not  the  pal- 
ate; and  the  Eastern  man  who  buys  them 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


11 


—delivered  in  his  market  at  their  weight 
in  nickels— and  in  good  faith  eats  them  is 
probably  excusable  for  his  after  prejudice 
against  California  fruits. 

The  reason  why  the  lowlands  are  not 
well  adapted  to  horticulture  is  found  in 
the  damp,  cold  condition  of  the  ground. 
To  what  extent  this  difficulty  might  be 
obviated  by  a  thorough  system  of  under- 
drainage,  like  that  in  vogue  among  East- 
ern and  Old  World  farmers,  it  is  impossi- 
ble to  state.  So  far  as  I  am  informed,  no- 
body has  tested  the  method;  and,  unfor- 
tunately, our  lowland  farmers  are  not  of 
the  class  that  expend  any  of  their  sub- 
stance in  experiments. 

However  they  may  continue  to  offend 
the  Eastern  palate  with  their  big,  taste- 
less pears  and  peaches,  there  is  no  danger 
that  they  will  scandalize  our  citrus  fruits. 
Oranges,  lemons  and  limes  cannot  be 
profitably  grown  on  the  lowlands.  Not 
only  is  the  cold  soil  against  them,  but  the 
air  temperature  also  goes  below  their  limit 
of  endurance.  I  can  only  give  a  hint  at 
the  theory  of  atmospheric  strata,  which 
accounts  for  the  seeming  anomaly  of  the 
greater  warmth  existing  in  the  higher 
alitudes.  Suffice  it  that  cold  air  being 
more  dense  than  warm  is  heavier,  and 
hence  sinks  to  the  lowest  parts  of  the  val- 
ley and  establishes  its  level  just  as  an 
equal  volume  of  water  would  do.  In  our 


country  the  cold  spells  are  not  of  sufficient 
intensity  or  duration  to  raise  this  sea  of 
chilled  air  above  a  certain  level.  As  tho. 
cold  currents  flow  down  from  tho  snow- 
capped mountain  peaks,  they  seek  the 
channels  of  greatest  depression,  and  the 
warm  atmosphere  of  the  day  rises  upon 
the  surface  of  the  invisible  flood.  The 
high  grounds  escape  this  inundation; 
hence  their  greater  freedom  from  frosts. 
This  is  not  a  mere  hypothesis,  but  a  well- 
established  physical  condition  which  is 
demonstrated  nightly  through  nearly  the 
entire  year.  In  winter  it  is  possible  to 
find  a  difference  of  fifteen  or  twenty  de- 
grees between  the  temperature  of  the  high 
and  low  lands.  In  ascending  from  the 
valley  I  have  many  times  noted  the  tran- 
sition from  a  colder  to  a  warmer  stratum 
of  air,  and  have  even  taken  cognizance  of 
three  such  strata  in  making  the  elevation 
of  two  hundred  feet.  In  such  cases  the 
change  is  as  great  and  as  sharply  defined 
as  one  would  experience  in  passing  from 
a  cold  bath  to  a  warm  one. 

It  has  been  truly  ftiid  that  a  man  might 
as  well  try  to  raise  oranges  in  Greenland 
as  in  some  portions  of  Southern  California. 
While  the  object  of  these  articles  is  main- 
ly to  point  out  the  situations  favorable  to 
orange  growing,  it  is  also  within  their 
province  to  say  where  oranges  may  not  be 
grown.  The  lowlands  should  be  avoided., 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE   MIDDLE  LANDS. 


The  uplands,  classified  as  the  second 
grand  division  of  the  country,  constitute 
our  great  body  of  agricultural  and  horti- 
cultural lands.  As  regards  soil,  elevation, 
water  supply,  and  all  leading  character- 
istics, these  uplands  are  greatly  diversi- 
fied. They  are,  therefore,  adapted  to  a 
wide  range  of  products,  and,  in  one  place 
or  another,  they  yield  everything  that  is 
grown  in  the  country.  And  it  is  enthusi- 
astically claimed  that  we  have  every  pro- 
duct known  to  the  sub-tropical  and  tem- 
perate zones,  and  some  that  are  peculiar 


to  the  torrid  and  frigid.  It  was  mainly 
upon  the  broad  expanse  of  these  uplands 
that  Los  Angeles  county  produced  in  1882 
her  1,700,000  bushels  of  wheat  and  729,000 
bushels  of  barley;  her  fruit  crop  to  the 
value  of  $950,000,  and  the  grapes  from 
which  were  manufactured  3, 100,000  gallons 
of  wine  and  145,000  gallons  of  brandy. 

It  should  be  understood  that  I  include 
in  the  category  of  uplands  not  only  the 
broad  plain  of  the  Los  Angeles  valley,  but 
also  the  tributary  valleys,  which  are  main- 
ly devoted  to  grain.  These  lands  produce- 


12 


THE  ORANGE; 


wheat  and  barley  without  irrigation,  and 
during  the  past  five  years  have  averaged 
good  yields.  Latterly  it  has  been  demon- 
strated that  the  vine  may  also  be  grown 
here  without  irrigation,  and  thousands  of 
acres,  previously  considered  fit  only  for 
grain,  have  been  transformed  into  vine- 
yards. For  general  farm  products  and 
fruits,  however,  irrigation  is  necessary. 

Oranges  are  produced  011  the  uplands 
with  varying  results,  which  may  be  termed 
good,  bad  and  indifferent.  In  proximity 
to  the  ocean,  the  orange  tree  does  not 
thrive.  As  the  valley  recedes,  gaining 
continually  in  altitude  and  modifying  the 
sea  breezes,  the  chances  for  successful  or- 
ange culture  increase.  Two  years  ago  it 
would  have  been  an  act  of  treason  for  me 
to  say  that  the  best  flavored  oranges  could 
not  be  grown  in  and  about  the  city  of  Los 
Angeles,  twenty  miles  from  the  coast. 
But  it  is  even  so.  All  unprejudiced  ob- 
servers, and  some  that  are  prejudiced,  are 
forced  by  the  logic  of  market  quotations 
to  acknowledge  the  fact.  Last  season  Los 
Angeles  fruits  were  sold  by  our  jobbing 


houses  and  hucksters  at  half,  or  less  than 
half,  the  prices  commanded  by  the  or- 
anges of  Pasadena  and  Duarte  (mesas), 
and  of  the  far  interior  yalley  of  Riverside, 
in  San  Bernardino  county. 

I  have  said  that  the  chances  of  success 
in  orange  growing  increase  as  the  valleys 
recede  from  the  ocean.  The  favorable 
conditions  culminate  in  the  high  interior 
irrigable  valleys  like  that  of  Riverside, 
where  the  soil  is  warm,  and  the  weather 
hotter  in  summer,  and  more  tempered  in 
winter.  The  oranges  of  Riverside  rate  as 
the  finest  grown  in  the  State,  and  com- 
mand the  highest  prices.  The  same  fa- 
vorable conditions  are  found  on  the  mesas 
which  lie  against  the  Sierra  Madre  moun- 
tains on  the  south,  southeast  and  south- 
west. Here  the  atmosphere  is  warmer  by 
reason  of  the  greater  elevation,  and  the 
earth  absorbs  heat  both  from  the  direct 
rays  of  the  sun  and  the  refraction  from 
the  mountain  sides.  This  brings  us  to  the 
consideration  of  what  I  have  termed  the 
third  natural  division  of  our  country. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  MESAS. 


Less  than  twelve  years  have  elapsed 
since  the  settlement  and  improvement  of 
our  mesas  began.  During  the  first  half  of 
this  time  the  general  public  looked  ask- 
ance at  the  few  venturesome  people  who 
had  set  out  to  demonstrate  that  these 
lands  were  really  arable.  When  success 
was  finally  secured,  the  press  took  up  the 
matter  and  agitated  it  so  persistently  that 
a  general  change  of  opinion  was  soon  ef- 
fected. 

That  the  advantages  of  the  mesas  for 
fruit  growing,  and  especially  for  orange 
growing,  were  so  tardily  recognized  is  a 
matter  of  wonder.  A  man  with  "half  an 
eye"  should  have  observed  their  natural 
adaptability  to  horticulture  at  the  outset. 

The  early  settler  in  Los  Angeles  county 
found  the  upper  valleys  mostly  a  treeless 
;and  shrubless  waste.  The  only  vegeta- 
tion there  abounding  was  the  alfilerilla, 
lliat  hardy  cousin  of  the  geranium,  which 


matures  its  seed  whether  the  stalk  grows 
to  a  height  of  three  feet  or  a  half  inch- 
thus  allowing  the  utmost  latitude  for  wet 
and  dry  seasons,  and  perpetuating  itself 
where  scarcely  any  other  vegetation  could 
survive.  This  alfilerilla  the  early  settler 
found  dried  and  matted  upon  the  ground 
a  good  half  of  the  year.  In  marked  con- 
trast with  the  semi-sterility  of  the  plain, 
the  foothills  presented  a  perennial  cover- 
ing of  verdure.  There,  through  the  long, 
dry  summer,  the  lupine  and  larkspur  sent 
up  their  spikes  of  bloom,  and  the  sage 
and  grease-wood,  the  alder,  white  thorn 
and  buckthorn  blossomed  and  matured 
their  seeds  and  fruit.  In  some  localities, 
too,  there  were  vigorous  growths  of  live- 
oaks  and  sycamores. 

Now,  what  did  the  early  settler  do  but 
locate  his  farm  upon  the  treeless  and 
shrubless  plain,  where  he  applied  himself 
to  the  raising  of  an  orchard  and  vineyard 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


13 


by  irrigation!  And  he  imbibed  a  notion, 
somehow,  that  the  foothills  were  dry  and 
sterile.  This  prejudice  existed  for  a  hun- 
dred years.  Not  only  did  the  original 
settler  maintain  it  faithfully  to  the  end, 
but  his  sons  and  his  sons'  sons,  to  the 
third  and  fourth  generation.  • 

Our  comparatively  recent  discovery  that 
the  foothills  otter  desirable  lands  for  fruit 
culture  is,  in  reality,  no  discovery  at  all. 
The  viticulturists  of  the  old  world  have 
known  the  fact  and  have  taken  advantage 
of  it  for  many  years.  In  France,  the  most 
celebrated  vineyards — Chateau  Marguax, 
Chateau  Leoville,  Monte  Bello,  Cliquot, 
and  many  more — are  located  on  the  sum- 
mit or  sides  of  eminences.  In  Germany, 
Johannisberg  and  other  noble  wines  are 
produced  on  the  Rhine  hills.  Spain  was 
the  last  among  European  countries  in  dis- 
covering the  natural  advantages  of  the 
highlands,  and  when  the  fact  became  pat- 
ent some  of  the  more  desirable  locations 
advanced  in  value  a  thousand  per  cent. 

For  fruit  trees  as  well  as  for  vines  the 
elevated  lands  are  in  request  in  France 
and  Spain,  and  in  Mediterranean  coun- 
tries. Substantially  the  same  fruits  that 


excel  in  our  higher  altitudes  excel  in  th» 
higher  altitudes  in  France. 

Gen.  H.  S.  Sanford,  of  Florida,  writing 
of  citrus  culture  in  Sicily,  says  :  ''The 
richest  soil  does  not  produce  the  most  es- 
teemed fruits.  Thus,  in  the  vast  and  fer- 
tile valley  of  the  Concho,  back  of  Paler- 
mo, covered  with  orange  groves  of  most 
luxuriant  growth,  its  productions  sell  for 
one-third  less  than  those  of  the  same  trees 
planted  on  Monte  Reale,  and  other  hills 
insight,  with  poor,  calcareous  soil;  and 
whose  fruits,  prized  especially  for  export, 
by  reason  of  their  quality  of  long  keep- 
ing, are  known  by  the  mark  * M  '  ( Moun- 
tain)." 

It  is  thus  shown  that  the  prejudice  of 
the  pioneer  fruit  grower  against  our  foot 
hills  was  opposed  to  precedent  as  well  as 
to  good  judgment.  Having  eyes,  he  saw 
not  the  proofs  set  before  him  by  nature  in 
the  wild  growth  of  trees  and  shrubs,  and, 
having  ears,  he  heard  not  the  testimony 
of  other  peoples.  Suffice  it  that  the  cenr 
tury-old  prejudice  having  at  length  been, 
dissipated,  fruit  and  vine  growers 
throughout  the  State  have  been  making 
seven-league  strides  to  recover  the  lost 
territory. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

STATUS  OF  THE  ORANGE  INDUSTRY, 


The  orange  tree  is  not  indigenous  to 
Southern  California.  Neither  can  it  exist 
here  in  a  wild,  untended  state.  Perhaps 
these  circumstances,  seemingly  disadvan- 
tageous, are  really  points  of  strength, 
when  we  consider  that  personal  exertion 
supplies  every  deficiency. 

Mankind— especially  the  mankind  of 
this  soft,  sub-tropical  clime — is  somewhat 
predisposed  to  "take  things  easy." 
Humor  his  laziness  a  little,  and  he  be- 
comes lazier  still.  If  our  not-too-energetic 
early  settlers  had  found  that  by  simply 
dropping  the  seed,  they  might  grow  thick- 
ets or  oranges  in  the  fence  corners  and  by 
the  roadsides,  depend  upon  it,  there 
would  have  been  wild  fruit  enough  to  sup- 
ply every  demand.  But  with  such  a  con- 


dition of  aft'airs,  the  incentive  to  careful 
modes  of  cultivation  would  have  been 
lacking,  and  to  this  day  our  people  might 
have  contented  themselves  with  a  profus- 
ion of  inferior  fruit,  unable  to  command 
any  extended  market,  and  oblivious  to  the 
great  possibilities  of  the  orange-growing 
industry.  Such,  indeed,  is  the  case  in 
Central  and  South  American  countries,., 
which  have  been  endowed  by  nature  with 
all  our  advantages  and  with  the  disadvant- 
age of  growing  the  fruit  without  personal 
effort. 

Our  cultivators,  obliged  from  the  outset 
to  give  their  trees  close  attention,  and  ad- 
monished that  the  profits  would  be  gauged 
by  the  thoroughness  of  their  work,  have 
addressed  themselves  to  mastering  every 


14 


THE  OEANGE; 


detail  of  the  industry.  They  have  studied 
the  requirements  of  their  trees;  have  in- 
formed themselves  of  the  most  scientific 
methods  of  propagation;  have  introduced, 
by  budding,  the  choicest  known  varieties; 
have  mastered  the  problem  of  insect  pests; 
have  established  markets,  and  are  work- 
ing to  gain  a  reputation  for  their  fruit.  In 
those  points  to  which  they  have  earnestly 
and  systematically  devoted  themselves,  it 
is  doubtful  whether  they  are  excelled  by 
any  orange  -  producing  country  in  the 
\vorld. 

In  two  essentials,  however,  they  are 
still  lacking :  1st— manuring  the  soil; 
2nd— preparing  and  packing  the  fruit.* 
But  a  reading,  thoughtful,  progressive 
people  will  not  take  long  to  discover  and 
remedy  their  lapses. 

Compared  with  horticulture  as  pursued 
in  other  portions  of  the  United  States,  our 
t-ection  occupies  a  leading  position.  The 
system  of  seeding  an  orchard  to  grass  or 
clover,  or  the  lack  of  system  in  allowing 
the  ground  to  grow  up  with  weeds — which 
one  sees  so  generally  followed  in  other 
States— in  not  in  vogue  among  our  culti- 
vators. On  the  contrary,  the  finest  tilth 
and  the  utmost  freedom  from  weeds  and 
grasses  is  maintained,  both  in  citrus  and 
deciduous  orchards.  It  would  not  be  a 
difficult  matter  to  snow  hundreds  of  fruit 
farms,  varying  in  size  from  ten  to  fifty 
acres,  which  are  as  carefully  tended  as  the 
finest  flower  garden. 

Some  people  of  poetical  temperament 
eom plain  of  the  absence  of  greensward 
in  our  orange  groves,  declaring  that  only 
this  is  lacking  to  complete  the  romance  of 
the  situation.  But  in  this  day  and  age 
romance  is  obliged  to  retire  before  utility. 
Scientific  culture  demands  that  soil  de- 
voted to  trees  shall  not  be  exhausted  by 
other  vegetable  growth;  also  that  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground  be  at  all  times  finely 
pulverir.ed  in  order  to  retard  evaporation. 
Our  system  of  fruit  growing  conforms  to 
these  requirements. 

For  a  time — I  refer  to  the  period  between 
1870  and  1880— citrus  culture  presented 
here  the  spectacle  of  a  great  industry  run 


*XOTK  — I  ghould  make  an  exception  in  Riverside, 
where  the  packing  In  doue  in  a  systematic  aud  thor- 
ough manner. 


mad.  In  a  preceding  chapter  I  referred 
to  the  furor  for  planting  which  then  exist- 
ed, and  I  also  alluded  briefly  to  some  of 
the  disastrous  results  which  followed. 
Those  years  inculcated  .some  useful  les- 
sons. They  taught  us  that  well  established 
precedents  *and  natural  conditions  can 
not  be  ignored  and  defied.  They  taught 
that  success  is  attainable  only  by  working 
with  Nature,  not  against  her. 

And  now,  chastened,  humbled,  pun- 
ished for  our  previous  thoughtlessness 
and  wrong-dohiK,  and  likewise  rewarded 
for  carefulness  and  right-doing,  wo  pro- 
ceed with  more  confidence  and  more  in- 
tegrity of  purpose  than  ever  before.  With 
precedents  well  established,aud  authentic 
information  disseminated  on  every  ques- 
tionable point,  a  man  who  takes  pains  to 
inform  himself  may  now  attain  success  in 
orange  culture  as  surety  as  the  sea  captain 
who  consults  the  chart  may  make  his 
port.  Of  course,  unforsccn  accidents  may 
happen  to  either  captain  or  orange-grower, 
but  of  the  two  the  "land-lubber"  enjoys 
the  greater  immunity. 

The  report  of  the  Surveyor-General  of 
California  for  the  fiscal  year  1881-2  gives 
the  following  statistics: 

Number  of  Number  of 

Benriug  Bearing 
Lemon  Trees.  Orange  Trees. 

I/os  Angeles  county 48,350  450,125 

San  Bernardino 3,749  15,435 

San  Diego 1,257  3,390 

Santa  Barbara 1,840  612 

Santa  Clara 547  1,635 

Sonoma 1,893  3,927 

Ventura 1,000  200 

Yolo 1,300 

Butte 2,400  2,960 

Scattering 1,01)4 

Total 62,130  484,227 

It  was  estimated  that  the  number  of 
trees  not  yet  in  bearing  (which  did  not 
figure  in  the  Assessor's  reports)  was  three 
times  the  number  of  those  in  bearing,  so 
that  the  grand  total  of  orange  trees  in  the 
State  could  not  have  been  far  from  two 
millions. 

Reports  for  the  year  1882-3  are  not  avail- 
able for  an}-  of  the  counties  except  Lo.s 
Angeles.  The  Assessor  of  that  county  re- 
turns this  year  526,640  bearing  orange 
trees  and  50,565  bearing  lemon  trees. 

The  entire  crop  of  the  State  was,  in  the 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


15 


reason  of  1881-2,  twenty  millions  of 
oranges.  San  Francisco,  which  is  our 
principal  market,  uses  about  twelve  mill- 
ions annually,  of  whichever  half  are  sup- 
plied by  Southern  California.  In  1879 
fifteen  car  loads  of  oranges  were  sent  from 
Los  Angeles  to  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah,  and 
from  that  time  a  good  market  has  there 
been  found.  The  rapid  influx  of  people 
to  Arizona  during  the  past  three  or  four 
years  greatly  increased  the  demand  from 
that  quarter.  Arizona,  by  reason  of  the 
inadaptability  of  her  soil  to  agriculture, 
the  principal  occupations  of  her  people 
being  mining  and  stock  raising,  and  the 
excessive  heat  of  her  summers,  is  certain 
to  continue  a  large  consumer.  Our  market 
has  also  been  extended  within  the  past 
few  years  so  that  it  includes  Denver,  Kan- 
sas City,  St.  Louis,  Chicago,  Cincinnati, 
Louisville,  and  all  of  the  principal  cities 
of  the  West  and  Southwest.  Some  fruit 
has  found  its  way  to  the  Atlantic  States 
and  some  has  been  shipped  to  European 
countries,  but  not  to  the  extent  of  forming 
regular  channels  of  trade. 

The  number  of  oranges  shipped  by  the 
Southern  Pacific  railroad  from  Southern 
California  to  Arizona,  New  Mexico,  Utah, 
Colorado,  and  through  points  on  the  Mis- 
souri river  and  east  thereof,  from  January 
1st  to  July  1st,  1883,  amounted  to  131,450 
boxes.  By  Wells,  Fargo  <fe  Co.,  during 
the  same  time,  estimated  20,000  more, 
making  in  all  151,450  boxes  containing 
30,200,000  oranges.  To  this  amount  we 
may  add  at  least  10,000,000  more,  shipped 
from  July  1st  to  Dec.  31st,  and  at  least 
5,000,000  used  up  in  local  markets  or  de- 
stroyed in  orchards,  making  for  the  crop, 
without  counting  those  shipped  to  San 
Francisco  45,000,000  oranges.  With  the 
fruit  raised  in  San  Diego,  San  Buenaven- 
tura and  Santa  Barbara,  there  wore  prob- 
ably 50,000,000  grown  in  the  year  1882  and 
1883.  It  is  estimated  that  the  annual  in- 
crease from  this  time  forward  will  bo  10,- 
000,000  a  year.  The  crop,  of  1883-4,  if  all 
put  in  boxes,  would  have  required  250,000 
boxes,  and  would  have  filled  700  freight 
cars  at  the  rate  of  350  boxes  per  car. 

The  remarkable  keeping  qualities  of  our 
oranges — due  in  a  measure,  no  doubt,  to 
their  thick  rind — renders  their  shipment 
long  distances  quite  feasible. 


The  reason  at  which  our  fruit  ripens 
(December  to  March)  and  the  length  of 
time  it  may  be  allowed  to  remain  on  tne 
trees  without  detriment  (December  to 
July)  gives  us  great  choice  of  market. 
Florida  and  Louisiana  oranges  are  sold 
from  November  1st  to  March  1st,  and  at 
the  latter  date  the  entire  crop  is  gone. 
There  i.s  no  necessity  for  marketing  our 
fruit  before  February  or  March — and  in 
fact  it  hardly  attains  its  full  size  and 
sweetness  until  then— when  we  have  the 
entire  field  to  ourselves.  Even  the  im- 
ported Tahitis  are  then  out  of  the  way. 

As  the  lines  of  trade  become  better  es- 
tablished, and  the  excellencies  of  our  fruit 
more  appreciated  throughout  the  United 
States,  the  demand  will,  of  course,  greatly 
increase.  It  is  fair  to  assume  that,  not- 
withstanding the  prodigious  increase  of 
plantations,  the  market  will  never  be 
overstocked  with  good  fruit.  Taking  the 
season  of  1883-4  for  an  example,  I  may 
state  that  as  early  as  December  1st,  when 
the  fruit  was  only  beginning  to  turn  color, 
four-fifths  of  the  crop  of  Los  Angeles 
county  had  been  engaged  by  jobbers. 
One  cultivator  sold  his  crop  on  the  trees 
for  the  lump  sum  of  $12,000.  The  usual 
price  paid  was  $2  per  box  (average  150 
oranges)  and  fancy  lots  went  up  to  $2.50, 
$3.00,  and  ever  $5.00  per  box.  That  year's 
crop  was  accounted  short— from  half  to 
two-thirds  the  normal  yield — and  the  nn- 
usual  promptness  of  purchasers  was,  of 
course,  largely  attributable  to  this  fact. 
But,  considering  the  increased  number  of 
bearing  trees,  and  the  increased  capacity 
of  some  of  the  older  ones,  the  yield  was 
still  very  large.  There  is  yet  no  substan- 
tial indication  that  the  market  is  being 
over-supplied. 

As  the  reader  has  already  discovered  by 
the  perusal  of  the  Surveyor  General's 
table  above  given,  the  cultivation  of  the 
orange  and  lemon  is  confined  to  a  few 
counties  of  California.  Los  Angeles  coun- 
ty alone  makes  a  showing  in  the  above 
table  of  over  forty-five  forty-eighths  of  all 
the  bearing  trees  in  the  State.  I  shall  at- 
tempt to  show,  before  concluding  this 
treatise,  that  only  a  limited  portion  of  Los 
Angeles  and  of  the  other  orange-growing 
counties  is  adapted  to  the  production  of 
the  better  class  of  oranges.  The  area  of 


16 


THE  ORANGE; 


possible  production  is,  then,  very  much 
restricted.  While  the  market  must  con- 
tinue to  grow,  and  while  the  product  will 
doubtless  grow  with  the  market,  the  area 
of  possible  production  can  not  grow.  At 
present  ten  oranges  are  imported  to  every 
onegrowrn  in  the  United  States.  The  time 
is  coming  when  our  home  product  will,  in 
a  great  measure,  supplant  foreign  impor- 
tations. 
Prices  may  fluctuate  somewhat,  and 


may  sometime  rule  much  lower  than  they 
do  now,  but  even  at  one-half  of  present 
quotations  orange-growing  must  continue 
profitable.  Growers  in  the  Mediterranean 
accept  one-quarter  of  our  prices,  yet  thev 
admit  that  they  would  find  their  groves 
profitable  even  at  lower  rates. 

It  is  the  firm  belief  of  the  writer  that 
orange-growing  in  California  will  never 
be  overdone,  and,  when  rightly  pursued, 
will  never  become  unprofitable. 


CHAPTER  X. 

PROFITS  OF  ORANGE  CULTURE. 


In  his  delightful  book  on  Orange  Cul- 
ture in  Florida,  Rev.  T.  W.  Moore  says: 

"When  compared  to  the  profit  from 
other  kinds  of  business,  that  derived  from 
orange  growing  is  so  large  that  a  state- 
ment of  facts  is  often  withheld  because 
the  truth  seems  fabulous  to  those  who 
have  only  had  experience  with  other 
kinds  of  fruit.  Those  engaged  in  the  busi- 
ness consider  each  tree,  as  soon  as  it  is  in 
healthy  and  vigorous  bearing,  worth  one 
hundred  dollars.  Indeed,  the  annual 
yield  of  such  a  tree  wfll  pay  a  large  inter- 
est on  the  one  hundred  dollar*.  Now  if 
we  take  into  consideration  that  from  forty 
to  one  hundred  trees  are  grown  on  an 
acre,  the  yield  is  immense.  In  the  quiet 
country,  breathing  its  pure  atmosphere, 
with  fresh  fruits  and  vegetables  from  Jan- 
uary to  January;  mith  milk,  butter,  honey 
and  poultry,  the  product  of  his  farm  and 
accessories  to  his  grove,  the  man  wh-o  has 
once  brought  his  trees  into  successful 
bearing  can  enjoy  all  these  and  much 
more  besides,  having  at  his  command  an 
income  quite  equal  to  that  commanded  by 
owners  of  blocks  of  well-improved  real 
estate  in  our  towns  and  cities,  with  not 
one-tenth  part  of  the  original  cost  of  city 
investments." 

This,  let  it  be  distinctly  understood, was 
not  written  about  California.  Therefore,  I 
have  introduced  it  here.  Before  opening 
lire  on  this  much  bombarded  question  of 
orange  culture,  I  wish  to  fortify  myself 
with  breastworks  that  shall  be  impregna- 


ble to  the  charge  of  local  prejudice.  My 
purpose  is  to  show  that  another  people, 
far  remote,  and  following  orange  culture 
under  conditions  quite  independent  of 
ours,  have  arrived  at  the  belief  that?  orange 
culture  is  very  profitable.  We  of  Cali- 
fornia have  worked  through  the  same 
premises  and  arrived  at  the  same  conclu- 
sion. The  proof  is  by  two  witnesses. 

It  is  a  difficult  matter  to  present  in  busi- 
ness-like form  the  Profit  and  Loss  account 
of  orange  culture  in  Southern  California. 
It  is  a  great  industry,  scattered  and  divers- 
ified. In  one  instance — pursued  b-y  a 
shiftless  cultivator,  or  in  an  illy  adapted 
locality,  or  lacking  in  other  ways  es^j^ntiai 
conditions  of  success— it  may  be  a  losing 
business.  Again,  with  moderately  favor- 
able conditions,  it  may  pay  a  small  profit. 
And  still  again,  with  every  circumstance 
in  its  favor,  including  a  favorable  turn  in 
the  market,  the  profit  may  appear  pro- 
digious. It  would  not  be  fair  to  cite  either 
of  these  cases  as  illustrative  of  general 
results.  It  would  not  be  fair  even  to 
strike  an  average  of  the  three.  Yet  some- 
where between  the  extremes  a  fair  gener- 
alization is  to  be  found.  ReavSonable  ex- 
cellence is,  after  all,  a  fair  criterion.  Let 
us  incline  towards  results  obtained  from 
right  conditions,  careful  culture,  fair  mar- 
kets. Such  results  anybody  can  attain  if 
he  observes  established  methods. 

Riverside  is  the  model  orange-growing 
settlement  of  Southern  California.  Here- 
the  conditions  of  reasonable  excellence  are 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFOKN1A. 


17 


more  general  and  uniform  than  in  any 
other  locality  of  like  extent  that  I  could 
name.  Owing  to  the  fact  that  statistics 
have  here  been  carefully  compiled,  I  am 
enabled  to  present  something  like  a  satis- 
factory view  of  the  industry  taken  as  a 
whole  and  averaged  up  by  the  acre.  These 
statistics  are  drawn  from  the  files  of  the 
Press  and  Horticulturist.  Returns  fur- 
nished by  the  cultivators  in  1882  showed  a 
grand  total  of  200,000  orange  trees,  cover- 
ing 2,000  acres.  The  trees  reported  in  1882 
may  be  considered  as  nearly  all  bearing 
at  the  present  time— some  at  their  best, 
others  yielding  their  first  or  second  crop, 
which  is  light.  Some  of  the  seedlings  may 
not  yet  have  come  into  bearing.  Last  year 
(1883-4),  the  total  orange  product  of  the 
valley  was  25,000  boxes.  The  fruit  then 
brought  an  average  of  $3  per  box. 

This  year,  the  trees  being  more  advanced 
and  the  crop  generally  fuller,  it  is  esti- 
mated that  the  product  will  be  from  100,- 
000  to  150,000  boxes.  Returns  received 
from  advance  shipments  range  from  $1  to 
$3.13  per  box.  These  are  net  returns  to 
the  producers,  free  of  any  expense  for 
picking,  packing  and  shipping.  The  vari- 
ation in  prices  is  owing,  in  a  great  meas- 
ure, to  different  qualities  of\  fruit,  the 
Riverside  Navels  and  other  choice  budded 
varieties  selling  above  the  seedlings.  As- 
suming $1.50  per  box  as  an  average  price, 
the  net  income  from  100,000  boxes  of  fruit 
would  be  $150,000.  Or,  taking  the  larger 
estimate  of  150,000  boxes,  it  would  be 
$225,000.  These  returns  averaged  upon 
the  2,000  acres  devoted  to  orange  culture, 
would  give  from  $75  to  $112.50  per  acre  as 
the  net  return.  In  this  calculation,  it 
must  be  remembered,  enter  the  trees  not 
yet  bearing,  others  just  coming  into  bear- 
ing and  a  .small  proportion  in  full  bear- 
ing. Prices  also  range  lower  than  ever 
before,  with  one  exception,  owing  to  the 
fact  that  our  channels  of  trade  are  but  just 
opening  up,  and  as  yet  the  means  of  dis- 
posing of  so  large  a  product  are  inade- 
quate. 

It  is  estimated  that  the  orange  crop  of 
Riverside,  when  the  trees  are  in  full  bear- 
ing,—say  five  years  hence,  should  amount 
to  five  boxes  to  the  tree,  or  1,000,000  boxes. 
Allowing  the  price  to  be  75  cents  per  box 
(and  it  is  hardly  hkelv  that  fruit  of  the 


quality  raised  in  the  interior  valleys  of 
California  will  ever  go  below  that  figure), 
we  shall  have  an  aggregate  net  income  of 
$750,000,  or  an  average  of  $375  per  acre. 

These  general  estimates  may  seem  over- 
drawn. Perhaps  the  inscrutable  logic  of 
events  may  prove  them  so.  But  I  can  as- 
sure my  readers  that  the  basis  of  calcula- 
tion both  in  price  of  fruit  and  yield,  are 
far  below  what  is  being  realized  in  indi- 
vidual cases. 

It  is  a  matter  of  record,  and  has  been 
cited  in  a  preceding  chapter,  that  some  of 
the  early  cultivators  realized  profits  which 
seem  fabulous.  Governor  Downey  says  of 
Don  Luis  Wolf  skill:  "He  lived  to  enjoy 
his  oranges  for  twenty  years,  and  they 
gave  him,  some  seasons,  an  income  of  a 
thousand  dollars  an  acre.  The  last  crop 
disposed  of  in  his  lifetime,  from  about 
twenty-eight  acres,  sold  on  the  trees  for 
$25,000."  The  Don's  sons  and  daughters, 
grown  to  mature  years,  still  enjoy  a 
princely  income  from  the  estate. 

Six  or  seven  years  ago  the  profits  of 
orange  culture  ran  up  to  marvelous  fig- 
ures. In  a  speech  delivered  by  Mr.  J.  de 
Barth  Shorb  to  a  public  body,  that  gentle- 
man stated  that  a  single  acre  of  Col.  B.  1). 
Wilson's  older  orange  groves  yielded 
nearly  $1800  in  one  year,  a  fact  which  can 
readily  be  believed  when  single  trees  have 
been  known  to  net  sixty  or  seventy  dol- 
lars, and  when  from  sixty  to  eighty  trees 
are  planted  to  the  acre.  Three  years  ago 
Mr.  Dalton  netted  $800  from  a  quarter  of 
an  acre  planted  in  orange  trees  of  a  fine 
quality,  and  of  mature  growth. 

In  these  times  of  increased  production 
and  lessened  prices  I  do  not  know  that 
any  cultivator  claims  to  equal  the  old 
Don's  profit  of  $1000  per  acre,  or  Col.  Wil- 
son's $1800.  But  it  has  been  not  unusual 
for  a  grower  to  clear  as  much  as  $560  an 
acre.  In  the  season  of  1882-3jone  producer 
in  the  San  Gabriel  valley  sold  his  crop  on 
the  trees  for  the  lump  sum  of  $23,000. 
This  from  about  forty  acres  of  orchard.' 

In  the  files  of  the  Press  and  fforticiitdtr- 
ist  for  October  25,  1884,  I  find  the  follow- 
ing: 

"Mr.  D.  C.  Twogood  has  450  seedling  or- 
ange trees,  covering  six  acres  of  land. 
The  trees  were  planted  twelve  years  ago, 
and  the  roots  were  three  years  old  when 


18 


THE  ORANGE; 


the  trees  were  planted,  thus  making  the 
trees  now  actually  fifteen  years  old.  They 
have  been  bearing  about  six  or  seven 
years.  It  is  from  this  six  acres  that  Mr. 
Twogood  expects  to  harvest  2000  boxes  of 
oranges.  He  judges  his  crop  this  year 
from  actual  yields  in  previous  years.  He 
lias,  however,  about  sixty  budded  trees, 
now  bearing  lightly,  in  addition  to  the  450 
seedlings,  and  possibly  it  may  require  a 
portion  of  this  fruit  to  make  up  his  esti- 
mate. He  also  lias  ten  acres  of  budded 
orange  trees  that  are  just  beginning  to 
show  fruit. 

"Ho  has  obtained  $3  per  box,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  one  year — two  years  ago — when 
on  account  of  the  freeze  he  got  only  $2.25 
per  box.  If  he  gets  $l  per  box  this  year, 
that  will  be  $1000  per  acre,  which  will  pay 
ten  per  cent  on  an  investment  of  $10,000 
per  acre,  or  something  less  afier  deduct- 
ing running  expenses. 

"Regarding  the  cost  of  caring  for  a 
place,  that  depends  upon  circumstances. 
If  a  man  lias  a  five-acre  tr.u-t,  it  costs  him 
more  to  take  care  of  it  than  it  does  if  he 
has  twenty  or  forty  acres.  A  man  can 
hire  all  the  work  done  in  an  orange  or- 
chard for  §30  per  acre  a  j-ear,  but  in  addi- 
tion to  this  work  he  must  give  a  certain 
amount  of  personal  care  and  attention  not 
called  for  in  the  $30  per  acre  contract.  If 
he  expects  to  hire  all  the  work  done,  but 
to  supervise  it  in  person,  and  do  a  little 
himself  occasionally,  $30  per  acre  ought  to 
keep  an  orchard  in  good  shape  for  one 
year. 

"  With  this  year's  crop  Mr.  Twogood 


will  have  taken  about  $12,000  worth  of 
fruit  from  his  six  acres  in  twelve  years 
since  planting— all  of  which,  of  course, 
has  been  within  the  last  six  years.  Tho 
orchard  has  cost  him  something  like  the 
following  figures: 

*Six  acres  of  land  at  $2"i  per  acre $      150 

Four  hundred  and  fifty  trees  at  $1  each 450 

Twelve  years  of  care  at  $30  per  acre  a  year. .  2,160 
luterest  oil  amount  at  10  per  cent  for  six  yrs.  1  656 

Total  investment .$  4,416 

Total  receipts 12,000 


$  7,iB4 

"The  present  value  of  property  each 
one  can  estimate  for  himself.  Can  Mr. 
Twngood  afford  to  sell  that  orchard  for 
*f>,000  per  acre  ?" 

As  the  market  goes,  Mr.  Twogood  does 
not  realize  $3  per  box  for  his  fruit;  but,  at 
half  that  price,  provided  the  crop  holds  up 
to  estimate,  his  returns  will  be  $500  an 
acre. 

If,  in  the  evolution  of  the  orange  indus- 
try, the  time  shall  come  when  a  grove  in 
full  bearing  yields  only  $100  an  acre  net, 
the  profit  ought  still  to  satisfy  a  man  of 
moderate  ambition.  With  ten  acres  in 
trees,  yielding  a  revenue  of  $1,000  a  year, 
and  the  hundred  and  one  accessories  and 
economies  of  country  life,  a  man  ought  to 
be  able  to  live  and  support  a  family.  Ho 
may  enjoy  not  only  the  substantial  com- 
forts, but  many  of  the  elegancies  of  life. 
This  is  an  independence. 


*Iu  order  to  avoid  a  false  impression,  I  should 
say  that  such  land  is  no  longer  to  be  had  in  River- 
side at  $25  an  acre,  but  is  worth,  unimproved,  teu 
times  that  figure. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

CHARACTERISTICS  OF  THK  ORANGE. 


Scientists  tell  us  that  the  orange  is  a 
berry.  The  pulp,  tho  separating  mem- 
branes and  the  skin  are  but  a  thickening 
of  the  pericarp  or  seed  vessel . 

In  this  respect  the  orange  resembldfe  the 
grape  (also  a  berry)  and  is  totally  different 
from  the  apple,  in  which  all  of  the  parts 
of  the  flower — calyx,  corolla,  stamens  and 


pistil — are  wrought  into  the  fruit.  The 
natural  office  of  the  orange,  then,  is  to 
bear  seed. 

Before  a  thousand  years  of  evolution 
made  the  orange  what  we  know  it  today, 
the  tree  bore  beans— or  at  least  produced 
its  seed  in  pods  clustered  together  at  the 
end  of  a  stem.  If  you  will  peel  an  orange 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


19 


and  separate  it  along  the  membranes  into 
its  various  segments,  yon  will  have  before 
you  these  seed  pods  in  something  like 
their  original  form.  Doubtless  as  it  first 
grew,  the  pulp  was  much  less  than  we  find 
in  our  abnormally  developed  fruit; — 
there  may  have  been  little  of  the  pod  ex- 
cept the  seeds  and  the  leathery  skin 
which  enclosed  them.  But  finally  this 
hunch  of  seed  pods  adhered  at  their 
bases,  and  the  union  extended  to  the 
apex,  uniting  all  the  segments  into  a  sin- 
gle fruit  of  spherical  form.  With  this 
union,  the  portions  of  the  thick  rind 
which  came  within  the  sphere  degener- 
ated into  the  thin  membranes  which  we 
now  lind.  The  development  of  the  pulp 
into  the  full,  juicy  tissues  of  the  perfect 
fruit  is  largely  the  work  of  man,  in  care- 
fully selecting  the  best  species,  improving 
them  by  cultivation,  and  transmitting  the 
good  qualities  by  the  process  .of  budding. 
Note  the  fact  that  the  development  of 
these  juicy  tissues  has  been  at  the  expense 
of  the  seeds  and  cuticle.  The  highest  type 
of  budded  orange*  is  nearly  seedless  and 
has  a  thin  rind. 

When  you  find  an  orange  "sport" 
which  shows  a  tendency  to  split  at  the 
bloom  end  into  a  number  of  pod-like  seg- 
ments, or  to  show  decided  creases  in  the 
rind  along  the  lines  of  the  segments,  as 
though  it  had  half  a  notion  to  divide  itself 
up,  remember  that  the  tree  which  bore 
ihis  fruit  was  thinking  of  its  great,  great, 
great  grandmother,  that  passed  away  a 
couple  of  thousand  years  ago.  This 
"sport,"  as  well  as  all  others,  illustrates 
the  natural  tendency  of  all  organisms, 
plant  or  animal,  to  revert  to  an  earlier 
rendition.  The  primitive  form  of  the  or- 
ange was  what  scientists  term  "apocar- 
pous." 

The  orange  tree,  compared  with  many 
other  trees  that  are  adapted  to  a  sub-trop- 
ical climate,  is  of  slow  growth.  It  requires 
about  sixteen  years  for  the  seedling  to  at- 
tain what  might  be  called  its  full  normal 
proportions.  It  then  stands  about  twerjty- 
tive  feet  high,*  with  a  spread  of  branches 

*The  size  of  bndded  trees  varies  so  much  from 
the  standard  seedling  that  I  do  not  attempt  to  can- 
vass the  matter  in  this  article.  There  are  dwarf, 
*eini-dwarf  and  ftandard  buds,  all  of  which  follow 
their  respective  Habits  when  set  upon  a  seedling 
s-tock,  and  make  trees  from  five  to  twenty-five  feet 
in  height. 


of  about  the  same  distance,  and  a  circum- 
ference of  trunk,  near  the  ground,  of 
nearly  three  feet.  The  seventy-year  old 
orange  tree  of  the  Mission  orchard,  Sai\ 
Gabriel,  which  I  measured,  showed  a  girth 
of  forty-two  inches.  The  inference  is  fail- 
that,  between  the  ages  of  sixteen  and  sev- 
enty, it  had  increased  its  circumference  of 
trunk  only  six  inches.  As  the  orange 
tree  attains  its  maturity,  its  cylindrical 
trunk  changes  to  one  of  eccentric  longitu- 
dinal corrugations,  although,  if  healthy, 
the  bark  still  remains  smooth. 

The  wood  of  the  orange  tree  is  close- 
grained,  hard  and  susceptible  to  a  fine 
polish.  It  is  of  a  clear,  yellow  color,  em- 
bodying a  suggestion  of  the  fruit  itself. 
The  top  of  the  tree  contains  another  sug- 
gestion of  the  fruit,  for,  if  allowed  to  take 
its  natural  bent,  with  little  pruning,  its 
contour  is  almost  spherical,  like  the 
orange.. 

The  leaves  are  ovate  in  form,  slightly 
serrated,  and  of  thick,  leathery  texture. 
When  newly  forming  they  are  of  a  bright 
yellow  hue,  but  as  they  mature  they 
change  to  a  dark  green,  with  the  upper 
surface  presenting  a  decided  gloss.  The 
tree  is  an  evergreen,  and  it  has  numerous 
seasons  of  growth  during  the  year,  with 
slight  dormant  intermissions.  I  once  took 
careful  note  of  a  tree  at  my  place,  with  the 
following  result :  On  the  first  of  January 
there  was  a  little  new  growth  already 
formed.  This  made  some  progress  dur- 
ing the  month,  and  hardened  up  about 
the  middle  of  February.  In  April  another 
growth  began,  and  matured  in  May. 
About  the  middle  of  July  the  third  grow- 
ing period  commenced,  and  this  time  the 
tree  made  more  wood  than  in  both  pre- 
vious growths  combined.  By  the  last  of 
August  the  yellow  leaves  had  all  turned 
to  their  normal  shade,  and  the  stems  were 
hardened.  In  October  there  was  a  slight 
growth.  In  December  the  shoots  started 
again,  but  this  was  the  same  growtii  I  had 
noted  at  the  beginning  of  the  year.  Thus 
I  found  four  distinct  growing  periods.  •  It 
is  riot  unusual  for  trees  to  make  even  nve 
growths  in  a  year  under  favorable  circum- 
stances, while  writh  retarding  causes  they 
may  make  only  one  or  two.  TUP.  times  of 
starting  and  maturing  may  also  vary  al- 
most a  month,  according  to  circumstances 


20 


THE  OEANGE; 


of  irrigation,  cultivation,  temperature, 
etc.  The  dormant  periods  of  the  orange 
tree  may  be  generally  defined  as  follows  : 

The  middle  of  March  to  the  middle  of 
April. 

The  month  of  June. 

The  month  of  September. 

The  middle  of  November  to  the  middle 
of  December. 

The  orange  tree  blossoms  early  in  Feb- 
ruary, and  continues  in  flower  until  the 
last  of  March.  The  blossom  is  a  pure 
white,  of  the  most  exquisite  texture,  and 
its  fragrance  is  so  great  as  to  be  almost 
surfeiting.  As  a  typical  flower,  twined 
into  a  wreath  to  surmount  the  head  of  a 
bride,  nothing  could  be  more  delicately 
suggestive  of  beauty,  purity  and  sweet- 
ness. But  those  who  haye  observed  the 
orange  flower  only  in  the  conventional 
bridal  wreath  have  seen  but  a  poor  coun- 
terfeit presentment  of  the  real  blossom. 

The  fruit  sets  in  February  or  March  and 
attains  its  maturity  one  year  thereafter, 
when  the  tree  blossoms  again.  At  the  time 
of  blooming  one  may  see  it  loaded  with  its 
golden  fruitage  and  dazzling  with  bloom. 
The  contrast  of  these  colors  with  the  dark 
green  of  the  foliage  forms  a  most  enchant- 
ing picture.  The  tree  is  itself  a  bride, 
clothed  in  satin  emerald,  crowned  with  a 
snowy  wreath  and  decked  with  precious 
jewels. 

The  orange  clings  to  its  stem  with  great 
tenacity,  and  it  is  not  unusual  to  find  fruit 
of  a  former  year's  growth  still  on  the  tree 
when  a  second  crop  is  attaining  maturity. 
The  quality  deteriorates  however  if  it  is 
allowed  to  remain  long  after  maturity.  In 
time  the  juice  is  absorbed  entirely,  leaving 
the  pulp  a  dry,  spongy  mass. 

Concerning  the  capacity  of  production, 
there  is  great  variance.  Mr.  H.  M.  Beers 
has  the  largest  tree  in  Riverside.  It  is 
Keventeen  years  old,  and  the  trunk  meas- 
ures three  feet  in  circumference,  or  nearly 
twelve  inches  in  diameter.  At  the  age  of 
nine  years  it  bore  about  half  a  dozen  or- 
anges; at  eleven  years  it  bore  two  thou- 
sand; at  thirteen  years  it  bore  two  thou- 
sand two  hundred  and  fifty;  at  fifteen 
years  it  bore  four  thousand;  at  seventeen 


years,  which  brings  it  to  the  present  sea- 
son, it  contains,  according  to  estimate, 
four  thousand.  Not  every  orange  tree 
presents  such  a  record  as  this,  however. 

The  orange  tree  revels  in  a  high  temper- 
ature. In  fact,  very  warm  weather  is  es- 
sential to  the  raising  of  good  fruit.  It  is 
not  sufficient  that  the  warm  weather  occur 
in  summer,  but  a  high  average  must  be 
maintained  in  winter  as  well,  and  the  ex- 
treme should  never  fall  below  a  certain, 
point.  This  point  may  be  placed  at  23  de- 
grees above  zero  F. — 9  degrees  below  the 
freezing  temperature.  A  cold  spell  that 
reaches  this  extreme  will  destroy  young 
orange  trees  in  nursery  and  nip  the  ten- 
der growth  of  older  trees.  In  the  latter 
part  of  January,  1883,  the  thermometer 
reached  17  degrees  above  zero  in  many 
places  in  Southern  California.  That  was 
an  unprecedentedly  cold  wave.  Oranges 
were  frozen  on  the  trees,  and  their  juices 
utterly  destroyed.  The  trees  themselves 
were  frosted  at  the  extremities  of  their 
branches,  but  suffered  no  serious  check. 
Younger  trees  were  considerably  injured, 
and  nursery  stock  was  frozen  to  the 
ground.  The  lemon  trees  suffered  more 
than  the  orange,  and  many  lime  orchards 
were  utterly  destroyed. 

While  the  full-grown  orange  tree  wili 
survive  a  good  deal  of  cold  weather,  and 
is  not  destroyed  by  the  extreme  above 
named,  it  may  still  be  set  down  as  a  safe 
proposition  that  the  less  frequently  the 
thermometer  goes  below  the  freezing 
point  (32  degrees  above  zero)  the  better  it 
is  for  both  tree  and  fruit. 

The  orange  is  long-lived.  An  instance 
is  on  record  of  a  tree  in  Italy  living  to  the 
age  of  four  hundred  years.  But  that  was 
with  the  most  careful  treatment,  through 
successive  generations,  with  repeated  re- 
newals of  the  soil.  As  we  grow  the  or- 
ange tree  in  the  open  air,  with  a  minimum 
of  attention,  a  century  would  probably  be 
its  full  span.  But  a  hundred  years  is  a 
long  time  to  exist  on  this  earth,  and  after 
such  a  life  of  usefulness,  if  there  is  any 
better  vegetable  kingdom  elsewhere,  the 
orange  tree  ought  to  be  allowed  to  go 
there. 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


BUDDED   VARIETIES. 


Although  there  are  a  hundred  or  more 
named  oranges,  one  might  count  on  his 
lingers  all  the  varieties  that  are  in  request 
for  budding.  The  leading  varieties  are  the 
Riverside  Navel,  Mediterranean  Sweet, 
Paper  Rind  St.  Michael  and  Maltese  Blood, 
all  foreign  fruits.  Some  attention  was 
paid  a  few  years  ago  to  the  Konah,  Wil- 
son's Best,  Wolfskill's  Best,  Baldwin's 
Favorite,  Du  Roi,  Australian  Navel,  Aca- 
pulco,  Nicaraguan  and  some  other  varie- 
ties, but  these  no  longer  liold  their  own 
in  the  struggle  for  the  survival  of  the  fit- 
test. In  fact  every  other  orange  is  giving 
way  to  the  Riverside  Navel,  which  has 
come  to  be  universally  acknowledged  the 
best.  For  variety,  a  small  proportion  of 
Mediterranean  Sweet,  St.  Michael  and 
Maltese  Blood  are  planted,  and  it  is  likely 
that  other  kinds  will  find  their  way  to  a 
share  of  popular  favor.  But  it  must  be  a 
line  orange  that  wrests  the  palm  from  the 
Riverside  Navel.  As  public  opinion  wras 
a  number  of  years  in  coming  to  this  con- 
clusion however,  and  meanwhile  the  hon- 
ors were  more  or  less  divided,  a  large 
number  of  other  varieties  were  planted 
and  are  coming  into  bearing.  The  budded 
fruit  product  of  the  State  will  be  diversi- 
fied^enough  to  suit  all  requirements. 

For  convenience  of  reference,  I  append 
a  list  of  varieties  grown  in  California,  and 
also  give  a  list  of  varieties  grown  in  Flor- 
ida, which  have  not  been  introduced  in 
this  State. 

RIVERSIDE  NAVEL  —  also  known  as 
Washington  Navel,  Umbilical,  Bahia,  Em- 
big  ou). — Medium  size,  round,  skin  smooth 
and  of  fine  texture ;  nearly  seedless ; 
juicy;  high  flavored;  pulp  melting; 
quality  the  best.  The  peculiarity  which 
gives  this  fruit  its  name  and  marks  it  be- 
yond any  question  is  a  protuberance  in 
the  blossom  end  which  closely  re&embtes 
the  human  navel.  This  is  in  reality  a  lit- 
tle kernel,  enveloped  in  the  skin,  which 
when  examined  proves  to  be  an  aborted 
orange.  The  tree  is  semi-dwarf,  and  has 
a  few  small  thorns.  In  1873  the  Agricul- 
tural Department  at  Washington  imported 
several  orange  trees  from  Bahia,  Brazil. 


One  of  these  was  sent  to  Mrs.  L.  C.  Tib- 
bits,  of  Riverside,  San  Bernardino  county, 
this  state,  who  distributed  a  few  buds 
among  some  friends.  But  little  attention 
was  paid  to  the  original  tree  or  to  its  off- 
spring until  1879,  when  some  of  the  fruits 
were  exhibited.  Their  beautiful  color, 
peculiar  form,  and  excellent  quality  at- 
tracted immediate  attention,  and  stimu- 
lated its  propagation.  It  was  named  River- 
side Navel  to  distinguish  it  from  the  Aus- 
tralian Navel,  introduced  about  the  same 
time.  The  latter  is  distinctly  ribbed 
lengthwise,  of  light  color  and  inferior 
quality,  while  the  Riverside  is  smooth,  of 
a  golden  bronze  tint  and  a  fine  texture  ; 
satin-like  skin  ;  its  flavor  is  delicious- 
something  like  a  combination  of  the  best 
qualities  of  the  Messina  and  Florida  or- 
anges—and the  fruit  has  the  additional  ad- 
vantage of  few  or  no  seeds.  Since  the 
Riverside  Navel  made  its  appearance  it 
has  eclipsed  all  competitors,  and  has  taken 
first  premiums  wherever  exhibited.  Soon 
after  it  was  brought  to  -public  notice,  Mr. 
T.  W.  Cover,  of  Riverside,  became  pro- 
prietor of  the  original  stock,  and  he  dis- 
seminated buds  throughout  the  orange- 
growing  portion  of  the  State. 

MEDITERRANEAN  SWEET.— Medium  to 
large ;  oval ;  pulp  and  skin  of  fine  tex- 
ture ;  flavor  delicate,  less  acid  than  any 
other  variety  of  orange  grown  here ;  near- 
ly seedless  ;  ripens  late.  The  tree  is  a 
semi-dwarf,  almost  thornless,  matures 
early,  and  has  a  tendency  to  overbear. 
Fruit  should  be  thinned  vigorously  to  in- 
sure a  fair  growth  of  wood  and  develop- 
ment of  fruit  remaining.  Mr.  Thos.  A. 
Garey,  who  introduced  this  orange,  saya 
of  it :  "About  the  year  1870  I  imported 
several  varieties  of  orange  trees  from 
Messrs.  Ellwanger  <fe  Barry's  nursery  at 
Rochester,  New  York.  I  think  the  im- 
portation included  all  the  varieties  offered 
for  sale  by  this  firm.  One  of  the  trees  was 
lafeeled  Shaddock.  When  the  Shaddock 
fruited,  the  fruit  proved  to  be  a  first-class 
orange,  instead  of  the  coarse,  worthless 
fruit  its  name  led  me  to  expect.  I  called 
it  '  Garey 's  Favorite,'  but  subsequently 


22 


THE  ORANGE; 


eh  listened  it  *  Garey's  Mediterranean 
Sweet.'  Messrs.  Ellwanger  &  Barry  were 
appealed  to,  but  could  not  identify  the 
fruit  with  any  known  variety."  Next  to 
the  Washington  Navel,  the  Mediterranean 
Sweet  has  attained  the  greatest  popularity 
of  any  of  the  budded  kinds. 

THIN-SKINNED  OB  PAPER  RIND  ST. 
MICHAEL.  —  Fruit  small,  round,  thin- 
ekinned,  high-flavored  and  a  delicious 
sab-acid  ;  one  of  the  best  budded  varieties 
and  destined  to  increase  in  popularity  ; 
keeps  well  and  therefore  a  good  shipper. 
A  vender  once  told  me  they  sold  on  the 
streets  of  Los  Angeles  better  than  any 
other  variety  he  could  obtain.  Trees 
dwarfish  in  habit,  thorny. 

MALTESE  BLOOD. — This  variety  derives 
its  name  from  the  peculiar  marking  of  the 
pulp,  which  seems  to  be  streaked  and 
clotted  with  blood.  This  queer  character- 
istic varies  with  fruit  from  different  trees, 
different  ages  of  trees,  and  in  different 
stages  of  ripeness,  in  some  instances  be- 
ing barely  traceable  and  in  others  the 
blood-red  stain  suffusing  the  entire  pulp. 
The  older  the  tree  grows  the  more  marked 
the  fruit.  The  Maltese  Blood  is  a  little  un- 
der medium  size,  smooth,  round  and  fine 
textured ;  juicy  ;  high-flavored,  and  the 
pulp  tender  and  melting.  The  tree  is  a 
gemi-dwarf;  thornless  or  only  slightly 
thorny. 

KONAH.  —  A  California  seedling  from 
aeed  grown  on  Konah  Island;  most  of  the 
characteristics  of  a  first-class  seedling,  the 
chief  advantage  being  in  the  uniformity  of 
fruit;  thick  rind,  juicy,  large.  The  tree 
grows  to  the  full  size  of  a  seedling  and1  is 
thorny. 

Du  Roi.— Size  medium,  round,  skin 
firm;  quality  good,  fruit  apt  to  be  ribbed 
somewhat  like  a  musk  melon.  Trees  pro- 
lific, vigorous,  few  thorns.  Long  grown 
in  Florida  and  imported  from  there. 

ACAPULCO.  —  Tree  a  vigorous,  strong 
grower;  rind,  thick  and  rough;  pulp, 
coarse;  flavor,  good;  regular  but  late 
bearer. 

WILSON'S  BEST.— A  seedling  of  the  latter 
class,  originally  grown  by  Hon.  B.  I). 
Wilson.  All  the  characteristics  of  a  good 
seedling. 

WOLFSKILL'S  BKST. — Originated  by  Mr. 
Wolfskill,  of  Los  Angeles,  and  answering 


the  same  general  description  as  the  above. 

BALDWIN'S  FAVORITE.  — Originated  by 
Mr.  E.  J.  Baldwin,  of  Los  Angeles  county. 
Same  as  above. 

NICARAGUAN.  —  A  seedling  from  fruit- 
brought  from  the  peninsula  by  Dr.  J. 
Shaw  twenty-five  years  ago.  Fruit  verr 
large,  thick  skinned. 

HOMOSASSA.*— Of  Florida  origin;  size  of 
fruit  medium,  somewhat  flattened,  very 
heavy;  color  bright;  skin  very  smooth, 
thin,  tough  and  dense;  pulp  fine,  sweet 
and  juicy;  flavor  full  and  vinous;  mem- 
brane covering  segments  of  pulp  very 
thin  and  small;  ripens  very  early  and 
keeps  and  carries  well;  quality  best.  Tre# 
prolific,  vigorous,  very  thorny. 

TANGERINE,  MANDARIN,  OR  KID-GLOVK 
ORANGE.— This  is  a  dwarf  both  in  tree  and 
fruit,  and  has  been  grown  for  ornament 
and  curiosity  more  than  for  any  other 
purpose.  I  see,  however,  that  its  cultiva- 
tion is  extending  in  Florida  to  supply  a 
certain  dilettante  custom,  which  likes  to 
eat  its  orange  without  soiling  its  gloves. 
The  fruit  is  very  small,  saffron -colored, 
flattened  at  the  ends,  and  the  skin  part* 
readily  from  the  pulp,  while  the  pulp  di- 
vides readily  into  sections  without  the 
loss  of  juice.  It  has  a  peculiar  fragrance 
and  flavor,  but  altogether  amounts  tolittl** 
more  than  a  bon-bon.  Its  use  is  only  at 
passing  fancy,  I  think,  and  a  man  would 
hardly  be  justified  in  planting  a  largf* 
grove  of  Tangerines.  The  tree,  or  shrub,, 
as  it  might  be  termed,  is  regarded  by  some* 
botanists  as  a  distinct  species,  and  bj 
others  as  a  marked  variety  of  the  sweet 
orange.  It  is  very  ornamental,  being  dis- 
tinguished by  its  small,  lanceolate  leaves; 
slender,  flexible  branches;  somewhat  for- 
mal habit  of  growth t  and  the  flowers, 
which  are  white  and  smaller  than  those  of 
the  ordinary  orange. 

PUMALO.— A  dwarf  tree  with  peculiar 
glossy  foliage,  leaves  drawn  as  if  by  a 
puckering  string,  and  a  fruit  as  large  a* 
the  baby's  head.  Not  good  to  eat.  Grown 
for  ornament  only. 

BERGAMOT.  —  Fruit  large,  rough,  flat- 
tened ;  quality  fair;  leaven  large  and 
broadly  winged ;  when  bruised  give  fortto 


*A  few  trees  of  this  variety  are  to  be  found  o« 
Mr.  A.  8.  White's  place,  Bireraide.  The  fruit  i«  of 
fair  quality. 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


a  delicious  aroma  not  unlike  that  of  berg- 
amot,  from  which  peculiarity  the  tree  de- 
rives its  name.  Grown  mostly  for  orna- 
ment and  curiosity. 

Besides  the  above,  Mr.  Garey  enumer- 
ates the  following  forty  varieties  which 
be  imported  or  propagated: 

LARGE  ST.  MICHAEL.  —Thick  skinned  ; 
inferior. 

SMALL  ST.  MicHAKL.-Doubtfui  whether 
It  is  an  established  variety,  but,  if  so,  en- 
tirely distinct  from  the  Paper  Hind  St. 
Michael ;  small,  thick  skinned  ;  inferior. 

MALTESE  OVAL.— Not  fruited. 

Los  ANGELES.— Common  Seedling. 

CHUCHUPILLAS.— Mexican,  not  fruited. 

BITTER.— Bigarade  of  Florida. 

MYRTLE  LEAF.— Ornamental  only. 

PKRNAMBUCO.— Not  fruited. 

WHITE  ORANGE.— Pulp  white,  inferior. 

VARIEGATED  ORANGE.  —  Ornamental 
only. 

EXQUISITE.— Small ;  no  value. 

SANDWICH  ISLAND.— Small  and  very 
sour ;  no  value. 

LARGE  CHINESE.— Not  fruited. 

PROLIFIC.— Not  fruited. 

FORBIDDEN  FRUIT.— Not  fruited. 

EMPEROR  MANDARIN.— Dwarf  fruit ; 
fair  ;  not  equal  to  Mandarin. 

COOLIE  MANDARIN.— Tall,  standard  tree; 
thorny ;  fruit,  dwarf. 

DWARF  MANDARIN. — Dwarf  tree  ;  fruit 
identical  with  that  of  the  standard  Coolie 
Mandarin  above. 

CANTON  MANDARIN.— Not  fruited. 

THORNY  MANDARIN. — Not  fruited. 

EMPEROR  OF  CHINA.— Not  fruited. 

ST.  JAGO.— Not  fruited. 

EGG.— Not  fruited. 

NUTMEG.— Not  fruited. 

SEVILLE.— Not  fruited. 

Rio.— Not  fruited. 

TKNERIFFE.— Not  fruited. 

PARAMATTA.— Not  fruited. 

HEONG  LEONG.— Not  fruited. 

SABINA.— Not  fruited. 

CUMQUAT.— Not  fruited. 

QUEEN.— Quality  fair. 

POOR  MAN'S  ORANGE.— Not  fruited. 

SELETTO.— Not  fruited. 

BOUQUET.— Blooms  continuously ;  very 
ornamental. 

TAHITI.— Seedling ;  same  as  common 
Los  Angeles  fruit. 


LORKTTO.— Not  fruited. 

EXCELSIOR.— Fruited  ;  thought  to  be  a 
line  variety  and  a  possible  acquisition  to 
our  budded  fruits. 

FLORIDA  SKKDLJNG.— Same  as  Los  An- 
geles Seedling. 

PORTUGAL.— No  value. 

The  following  varieties  grown  in  Florida 
are  held  in  high  esteem  there,  but  have 
never  been  cultivated  in  California,  so  far 
as  I  am  informed.  For  this  list  I  am 
mainly  indebted  to  Manville's  Practical 
Orange  Culture  : 

EARLY  OBLONG.— Synonym,  Thomtettx 
lief  1. — Fruit  medium  size,  oblong,  thick 
skin  ;  lacking  the  sub-acid  of  other  sorts  ; 
quality  fair.  Though  its  color  does  not 
turn  much  before  the  other  sorts,  its  juice* 
attain  perfection  one  or  two  months  earlier, 
when  it  .should  be  marketed.  Tree  bears 
young  ;  prolific  ;  vigorous  ;  not  as  large 
as  some  ;  leaves  elliptical,  acute  and  scat- 
tering ;  branches  slender  and  thorniest. 
Originally  imported,  but  long  grown  in 
Florida. 

SATSUMA. — For  the  following  description 
of  this  tree  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  A.  F. 
Styles,  of  Jacksonville.  He  writes: 

"  This  new  Japanese  Orange  was  intro- 
duced into  Florida  several  years  since,  by 
Mrs.  General  Yanvalkenburg,  of  St.  Nich- 
olas, and  is  destined  to  take  high  rank 
among  the  new  varieties.  The  tree  is  of 
dwarf  habit  of  growth,  entirely  thornless, 
and  very  hardy.  In  the  cold  'snap'  of 
December,  1880,  the  leaves  of  this  tree  did 
not  even  curl,  while  all  other  varieties, 
with  the  same  exposure,  lost  all  their 
leaves.  It  is  sure  to  bear  the  second  year 
from  budding,  and  it  will  bear  too  heavily 
unless  prevented  by  thinning.  It  makes 
a  much  more  vigorous  and  thrifty  tree,  it 
budded  on  a  sweet  stock,  in  preference  to 
the  sour,  or  bitter-sweet. 

"Of  the  fruit,  Dr.  Davis,  in  his  book  on 
orange  culture,  says  :  *  This  fruit  belongs 
to  the  loose-rind  species,  Citrus  Auranti^ 
umJaponicum,  is  medium  size,  flattened, 
deep  orange  color,  smooth,  thin  skin, 
which  is  sweet,  aromatic  and  easily  de- 
tached from  the  pulp.  Color  of  pulp, 
dark  orange;  segments  part  freely;  fine 
grain,  tender,  juicy,  sweet  and  delicious. 
There  is  none  of  that  rank  odor  which 
characterizes  most  other  varieties  belong- 


THE  ORANGE, 


ing  to  the  same  class  and  species.  It  is 
destined  to  take  high  rank  as  a  table  and 
dessert  fruit.'  " 

NONPAREIL.— Size  above  medium,  some- 
what flattened,  color  ordinary,  grain  fine, 
pulp  melting  and  tender,  juice  sub-acid 
and  vinous.  Quality  best.  Tree  prolific 
and  very  thorny.  Native  seedling. 

HIGGINS. — Medium,  fair;  skin  smooth 
and  thin;  pulp  fine,  juicy,  sweet  and  ex- 
cellent. This  variety  was  awarded  twice 
the  first  premium  at  the  State  fair,  for 
quality. 

OLD  VINI.— Size  above  medium;  color, 
dark  orange;  skin  rather  rough,  medium; 
pulp  rather  coarse,  juicy,  sweet  and  re- 
markable for  a  sprightly  aromatic  flavor. 

TARDIFF.  —  Large,  dark  orange;  skin 
smooth  and  thin;  pulp  rather  tough;  grain 
fine,  juicy  and  sweet;  an  ordinary  orange, 
but  valuble  for  its  late  ripening  qualities. 

ARCADIA.— Size  large,  color  deep,  skin 
smooth,  medium;  pulp  deep  rich  color, 
coarse  melting,  juicy  and  sub-acid. 

SWEET  SEVILLE.— Small,  color  dark; 
skin  thin,  pulp  very  fine,  juicy,  melting 
and  very  sweet  and  sprightly. 

Other  varieties  named  but  not  requiring 
.special  description: 

PHILLIP'S  BITTER  SWEET. 

DRUNNETT. 

DIXON. 


SPRATT'S  HARUM. 

PARSON  BROWN. 

EGG. 

BIJOU— DANCY'S  TANGERINE. 

PEERLESS— Synonym,  RemberVs  Best.— 
Large;  round;  color,  light  clear  orange; 
skin  smooth,  fine  and  thin;  juicy;  juice 
sub-acid;  flavor  delicious;  quality  best. 
Tree  prolific,  vigorous  and  very  thorny. 
Native  seedling. 

MAGNUM  BONUM.— Size  large  to  very 
large;  flattened;  color  light,  clear  orange; 
skin  smooth  and  glossy,  grain  fine,  ten- 
der and  melting;  fruit  heavy  and  juicy; 
juice  sweet,  rich  and  vinous;  quality  best. 
Tree  prolific,  vigorous  and  very  thorny. 
Native  seedling. 

SOUR. — Large;  color  dark;  grain  coarse; 
inner  rind  bitter,;  juice  acid.  Retains  it* 
perfection  throughout  the  summer,  when 
it  is  much  prized  for  its  refreshing  acid 
juice;  used  also  for  making  marmalade 
and  conserves.  The  tree  bears  young; 
very  prolific;  vigorous;  makes  a  desirable 
and  ornamental  shade  tree.  Native  wild 
orange  of  Florida. 

BITTER  SWEET.— Medium  size;  juice 
sweet  and  pleasant  when  separated  from 
the  inner  bitter  rind.  Used  in  summer  as 
a  subsitute  for  the  sweet  fruit.  Tree  in- 
distinguishable from  the  above.  Native 
wild  orange  of  Florida. 


Part  II. 

PRACTICAL  ORANGE  CULTURE, 


CHAPTER  I. 


PROPAGATION. 


When  it  came  to  planting  my  orange 
orchard,  I  found  the  buying  of  young 
trees  at  75  cents  apiece  a  severe  strain  up- 
on my  resources.  To  grow  my  own  stock 
from  the  seed  was  not  to  be  thought  of, 
since  that  would  involve  a  delay  of  three 
or  four  years.  Time  is  money  in  fruit 
growing.  So  I  hit  upon  the  plan  of  buy- 
ing trees  for  my  own  orchard  and  plant- 
ing seeds  for  some  other  man's  orchard; 
paying  tribute  myself  and  taking  letters 
of  marque  and  reprisal  against  the  next 
generation  of  orange  planters.  The  idea 
was  by  no  means  original,  for  I  found  an 
old  gentleman  in  Pasadena  who  had  car- 
ried out  the  scheme  before  me.  He  had 
reared  his  nursery  in  the  open  spaces  be- 
•tween  his  rows  of  orange  trees,  and  he 
told  me  that  from  less  than  an  acre  thus  de- 
voted he  had  realized  $600.  His  success  as 
an  amateur  propagator  was  marked,  for  I 
found  in  his  nursery  the  finest  and  health- 
iest trees  in  the  market.  His  example, 
no  doubt,  had  much  to  do  with  confirm- 
ing my  purpose  to  plant  seeds. 

After  reading  all  the  available  authori- 
ties on  propagation,  and  consulting  all  of 
the  nurserymen  of  my  acquaintance,  I 
did  as  most  people  do  who  take  advice- 
followed  a  plan  of  my  own.  As  my 
method  proved  quite  successful  I  venture 
a  description  of  it.  Perhaps  it  will  be  of 
service  to  some  reader  in  forming  a  plan 
of  his  own  better  than  mine.  I  do  not 
•laim  to  have  originated  anything  in  the 
matter  of  propagation,  but  merely  to 
have  studied  the  delicate  requirements  of 
the  orange  seed  and  plant,  applying  there- 
to the  most  suitable  and,  at  the  same 
time,  the  most  labor-saving  methods 
which  I  could  devise. 

TIME.— I  planted  in  June. 

BOXES.— From  a  fruit  jobbing  firm  I 
obtained  a  quantity  of  boxing  material  in 
Ihe  "shook."  Size  of  boxes:  Eighteen 
vnches  square  and  five  inches  deep.  They 


were  a  kind  known  as  "peach  boxes," 
and  being  of  a  size  out  of  use  I  got  them 
for  nine  cents  apiece — about  one-half  mar- 
ket rates.  The  making  of  160  of  these 
boxes  required  two  days.  They  were 
fastened  staunchly  with  four  and  six 
penny  nails,  the  lids,  of  course,  not 
placed.  I  followed  the  precaution  of 
leaving  cracks  of  a  quarter  of  an  inch 
between  the  bottom  boards  to  facilitate 
drainage. 

SOIL. — While  the  boxes  were  making* 
the  Chinaman  was  engaged  hauling  and 
preparing  the  soil  to  fill  them.  In  the 
bottom  of  a  ravine,  among  the  oak  trees, 
I  found  a  sediment  deposited  by  the  win- 
ter flood,  which  seemed  to  be  the  lighter 
and  finer  particles  washed  from  the  soil 
above.  It  formed  a  compact,  grayish- 
black  mass,  which  cracked  open  as  the 
moisture  dried  out  of  it,  and  one  could 
pull  it  up  in  cakes.  Its  weight  was  only 
about  two-thirds  that  of  average  soil.  Ife 
crumbled  readily  between  the  fingers, 
leaving  a  powder  almost  as  fine  and  soft 
as  flour.  "This,"  I  said  to  myself,  "i» 
humus,  and  as  near  the  pure  article  as 
Nature  ever  prepares  it."  So  I  had  Ah 
Ngoon  haul  a  quantity  of  the  sediment. 
I  prepared  it  for  use  by  pulverizing  and 
then  passing  through  a  screen,  and  at  the 
same  time  adding  a  third  part  of  sifted 
sand.  This  mixture  made  a  warm,  mel- 
low, rich  soil,  free  from  gravel  and  all 
other  obstructions,  and  one  also  which 
would  not  pack  under  the  repeated  appli- 
cation of  water.  It  proved  to  be  remark- 
ably free  from  wild  seeds,  thus  obviating 
a  deal  of  laborious  weeding.  In  fact  it 
was  the  very  ne  plus  ultra  of  a  propagat- 
ing soil,  according  to  my  notion.  I  would 
not  know  how  to  improve  it  in  a  single 
particular  were  I  planting  again. 

FILLING  THB  BOXES. — From  the  pile  of 
prepared  soil  we  filled  each  box  about 
two-thirds  full,  striking  eff  the  top  to  a 


28 


THE  ORANGE; 


level  surface.  For  a  striker  I  used  a  little 
board,  notched,  as  shown  in  the  accom- 
panying diagram,  to  allow  the  lower  edge 
to  play  freely  inside  the  box  an  inch  and 
a  half  below  the  top  edge. 


THE    STRIKER. 

PLACING  THE  BOXES.  —  The  ground 
where  the  propagating  boxes  were  to  be 
located  had  previously  been  graded  to  a 
level.  As  each  box  was  in  turn  filled  and 
leveled,  it  was  placed  in  position  where  it 
was  .to  remain  through  the  season.  Nar- 
row strips  of  lumber  were  laid  on  the 
ground  for  the  boxes  to  rest  upon,  thus 


I  obtained  some  well-matured  seedling 
fruit.  A  quantity  of  cullings  —  thorned 
and  partially  rotted  fruit — thrown  out  by 
a  packing  house,  served  the  purpose,  and 
my  only  expense  was  the  hauling.  I  have 
since  used  seetis  from  imported  Tahiti 
oranges.  The  foreign  seeds  are  plumper 
a«d  more  fertile.  These  I  ordered  from  a 
San  Francisco  importing  house,  and  the 
expense,  delivered,  was  $7  per  barrel  of 
rotted  oranges.  A  barrel  yielded  about 
eight  thousand  seeds.  In  my  first  plant- 
ing, however,  the  native  seeds  did  fairly. 
EXTRACTING  THE  SEEDS. — In  using  fruit 
that  was  sound,  or  nearly  so,  I  made  a 
latitudinal  cut  about  the  orange,  taking 
care  that  the  knife  penetrated  only  a  part 
of  the  way  through  the  pulp.  The  halves 


nnDnnnnnnnnnnnnn 
nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 

nnnnDnnnnnnnnnnn 
nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 
nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 

nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 
nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 
Dnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 

nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 
nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 


ARRANGEMENT  OF  THE   BOXES. 


admitting  £  free  circulation  of  air  beneath 
for  warmth  and  drainage.  There  were 
four  tiers  of  boxes,  the  two  outside  con- 
taining two  rows  each;  the  inner,  three 
each.  This  made  ten  rows,  with  sixteen 
boxes  to  the  row — altogether  160  boxes. 
Between  the  tiers  alley-ways,  eighteen 
inches  wide,  gave  access  to  every  part  of 
the  bed.  No  alleys  were  left  around  the 
outside.  From  any  alley  I  could  reach 
over  the  first  row  of  boxes  and  work  in 
•the  second  row  without  inconvenience. 
SEEDS.— For  seed,  in  my  first  planting, 


were  then  torn  apart,  and  the  seeds  forced 
out  by  pressing  down  upon  the  pulp  with 
the  ball  of  the  thumb.  In  handling 
thoroughly  rotted  fruit  I  used  a  sieve  with 
quarter-inch  mesh.  In  this  the  pulp  was 
thoroughly  macerated  and  washed  with 
water.  The  finer  particles  passed  through 
the  sieve,  and  the  skins  and  coarser  parts 
were  picked  out,  leaving  the  seeds  sepa- 
rated and  clean.  The  seeds  should  not  bo 
allowed  to  dry  befoie  planting.  I  kept 
mine  in  a  bucket  of  water  until  used.  I 
tried,  to  a  certain  extent,  the  Mediterra- 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


neau  plan  of  throwing  out  the  seeds  that 
floated  in  the  water,  but  it  quickly  became 
apparent  that  this  was  no  test  for  them, 
the  difference  in  specific  gravity  being  so 
slight  and  variable  that  half  the  seeds 
that  floated  in  the  evening  would  beat  the 
bottom  in  the  morning,  and  vice  versa. 
With  native  seeds  the  only  test  that  seems 
worthy  of  mention  is  that  of  size  and 
plumpness,  the  fuller  being  the  more  fer- 
tile. With  Tahiti  seeds,  however,  the  test 
may  be  applied  with  advantage.  Put  the 
seeds  in  water  and  reject  all  that  float. 

PREPARATORY 
TO  PL.ANTIG.-AS 
soon  as  a  row  of 
boxes  was  in 
place,  I  sprink- 
led them  lightly 
to  give  consist- 
ency to  the  soil 
for  convenience 
of  working. 
Then  I  went 
over  them  with 
an  implement 
which,  for  lack 
of  a  better  name, 
I  call— 


stamper,  which,  fitting  snugly  outside  the 
box,  guided  the  appliance  as  it  was  low- 
ered to  place. 

INSERTING  THE  SEEDS.— The  stamping 
completed,  it  was  next  in  order  to  drop  a 
seed— one  only—  in  each  indentation. 

COVERING.— As  soon  as  a  box  had  re- 
ceived its  complement  of  seeds,  a  layer  of 
half  an  inch  of  the  same  prepared  soil 
was  added,  thus  covering  the  seeds  se- 
curely and  evenly.  The  final  leveling  of 
the  surface  was  performed  by  a  striker 
exactly  like  the  one  first  named  only  not 


THE  PROPAGATING   HOUSE. 


A  STAMPER. — A  board  nineteen  inches 
square,  perforated  with  auger  holes  an 
inch  and  a  half  apart,  and  a  round-headed 
pin  (I  used  old-fashioned  clothes-pins)  in- 
•erted  in  each  hole.  There  were  one  fiun- 
dred  and  fourteen  pins,  and  these,  when 


THE   STAMPER. 

the  •tamper  was  applied  with  considera- 
ble pressure  upon  the  plastic  surface  of 
the  soil  in  the  box,  left  one  hundred  and 
fourteen  little  indentations.  Accuracy  in 
the  matter  of  stamping  was  promoted  by 
a  couple  of  cleats  on  opposite  sides  of  the 


notched  so  deeply.  The  soil  as  finally 
leveled  was  an  inch  below  the  rim  of  the 
box.  The  final  operation  was 

WETTING — Which  was  done  as  soon  as 
a  row  of  boxes  had  been  planted  and  lev- 
eled. With  a  fine  rose  sprinkler  attached 
to  the  hose,  I  sprayed  the  boxes  until  the 
soil  was  well  moistened.  My  bed  of  one 
hundred  and  sixty  boxes  contained  a  little 
more  than  eighteen  thousand  seeds. 

A  PROPAGATING  HOUSE.— This  was  al- 
ready occupied  before  it  was  built.  I  had 
"anticipated,"  as  the  novelists  say;  but 
this  was  done  designedly,  because  I 
thought  it  would  be  easier  to  build  the 
house  over  the  boxes  after  they  had  been 
planted  and  arranged  than  to  move  the 
boxes,  after  planting,  into  the  house.  My 
propagating  house  was  a  very  simple  af- 
fair, though  entirely  different  from  the 
muslin  covering  usually  prescribed  in 
such  cases.  I  built,  in  fact,  a  structure 
quite  similar  to  a  chicken  coop,  roofed  over 
with  lath.  The  house  was  twenty  feet  by 
thirty  in  ground  dimensions  and  six  feet 


THE  ORANGE; 


high.  This  was  a  little  larger  than  my 
bed  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  boxes  re- 
quired, but  I  provided  for  extra  **  elbow 
room."  The  framework  of  the  house  was 
of  two  by  three  redwood  stuff,  posts  six 
feet  apart,  and  a  row  of  posts  standing 
longitudinally  through  the  middle  (plant- 
ed in  the  central  alley)  to  sustain  thereof. 
All  of  the  lath  work  for  sides  and  roof  was 
built  in  detached  panels,  the  roof  panels 
being  merely  laid  on  a  frame  work  provid- 
ed for  that  purpose,  and  the  side  panels 
tacked  on  so  that  they  could  all  be  re- 
moved at  will.  In  the  winter  when  my 
young  trees  needed  all  the  sunshine  they 
could  get,  these  panels  were  taken  off  the 
south  and  east  sides  and  the  top.  Thus  I 
got  a  good  exposure  without  moving  the 
boxes.  Around  the  sides  of  the  house  for 
the  height  of  two  feet  there  was  a  base  of 
three  inch  strips  with  open  spaces  of  an 
inch  between.  These  weredeisgned  to  re- 
main permanently  as  a  guard  against  dep- 
redating animals.  The  movable  side  panels 
were  fitted  above  this  base.  The  general 
appearance  of  the  house  is  represented  in 
the  foregoing  cut. 

OBJECTS  AND  ADVANTAGES.— The  main 
object  of  this  lath  structure  built  over 
the  propagating  boxes  was  to  supply 
a  semi-shade  for  the  young  plants, 
as  they  could  not  endure  the  full  glare  of 
the  summer  sun.  The  particular  advant- 
ages which  I  claim  for  my  propagating 
house  over  a  muslin  covering  are  its  free 
admission  of  light  and  air,  its  easy  access- 
ibility and  the  excellent  protection  which 
it  offers  from  animals.  When  cloth  is 
used  for  a  shade  there  is  much  trouble  in 
removing  the  covering  when  one  wishes 
to  get  at  the  plants.  Then,  too,  the  boxes 
oannot  be  grouped  so  compaetty,  but  need 
to  be  strung  out  in  long  tiers.  But  the  old 
way  of  propagating  does  not  contemplate 
boxes  at  all,  the  seeds  being  sown  broad- 
cast in  a  bed  and  afterwards  transplanted. 
The  advantages  which  I  gain  from  the 
boxes  are  these  : 

1.  The  seeds  being  distributed  regularly 
and  not  too  close  together,  each  plant  has 
Abundance  of  room  from  the  outset. 

2.  No  transplanting  is  necessary  until 
the  trees  are  a  year  old,  when  tney  can  bo 
placed  in  the  nursery  rows  at  once. 

•0.  In  transplanting,  the  taxes  may  be 


hauled  to  the  nursery  and  the  trees  left 
undisturbed  until  each,  in  turn,  is  set  into 
the  ground. 

4.  By  the  use  of  the  Widney  transplant- 
er, or  some  similar  device,  a  ball  of  earth 
may  be  taken  up  with  each  tree,  thus 
avoiding  an  exposure  of  the  roots  to  sun 
and  air  and  greatly  augmenting  the 
chances  of  life  and  thrift  in  the  young 
tree. 

EXPENSE. — The  items  of  expense  of  my 
seed  and  planting  (native  seeds)  and  prop- 
agating house  were  as  follows  : 
One  hundred  and  sixty  boxes  at  nine  cents . .  $14  40 

Making  same,  two  days  at  $2.50 5  00 

Hauling  and  preparing  soil 3  00 

Planting  seeds 1000 

Propagating  house 35  00 

Total $67  40 

The  items  for  propagating  house  and 
boxes  need  not  be  considered  an  irreme- 
diable expense,  as  the  boxes  will  serve 
for  another  season's  propagation,  if  de- 
sired, and  the  house  will  do  for  many  sea- 
sons, or  it  may  be  readily  converted  to 
other  uses.  The  panels  being  all  detached 
are  immediately  serviceable  for  a  fence  or 
chicken  coop. 

CONVENIENT  TO  WATER.— My  propa- 
gating house  was  located  close  to  a  hy- 
drant, and  by  attaching  a  hose  and  rising 
a  rose  nozzle  I  could  irrigate  the  en- 
tire bed  in  twenty  minutes.  I  took  care 
at  first  not  to  allow  the  surface  of  the  soil 
to  become  dry.  It  was  necessary  to  irri- 
gate every  alternate  day. 

1  MUIXJHINO.— The  retention  of  moisturo 
was  greatly  promoted  by  a  mulching  of 
wheat  chaff,  which  I  spread  over  the 
boxes  immediately  after  planting  the 
seeds.  I  took  care  that  my  chaff  wan 
thoroughly  freed  from  wheat  before  put- 
ting it  on,  as  there  was  no  room  in  the 
boxes  to  raise  grain. 

DANGER  IN  TOO  MUCH  MOISTURE.— 
The  boxes  must  not  be  kept  loo  wet.  1 
lost  some  young  plants  from  what  nur- 
sey-men  call  "damping  off,"— the  roots 
rotting  and  the  stems  and  leaves  turning 
yellow  and  withering.  As  stated,  I 
sprinkled  my  bed  every  alternate  day  to 
begin  with.  This  plan  ^us  followed  well 
through  the  summer,  when  the  irrigations 
were  reduced  to  two  a  week,  then  one  a 
week,  and  finally,  when  tho  winter  rains 


ITS  CULTUEE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


^et  in,  discontinued  altogether.  The  loss 
of  plants  from  damping  off  was  inconsid- 
erable, and  due,  I  am  led  to  believe,  more 
to  imperfect  drainage  in  some  of  the  boxes 
than  to  an  excess  of  water  applied.  In  ir- 
rigating, however,  it  should  be  borne  in 
mind.that  the  earth  needs  simply  a  good 
moistening,  not  a  soaking. 

GERMINATION  OF  THE  SEEDS.  —  Six 
weeks  after  planting,  the  greenish- 
yellow  orange  shoots  began  to  appear  in 
the  boxes.  They  came  along  quite  irreg- 
ularly, but  in  three  months  the  quota  \vas 
well  filled.  Some  seeds,  lacking  vitality, 
went  up  weak  and  spindling  shoots  ;  oth- 
ers, from  ail  excess  of  germinative  force 
produced  twins.  Some  of  the  former  died, 
•and  the  latter  I  thinned  out  to  one  stalk 
apiece,  putting  the  extra  planis  in  vacant 
places. 

WEEDING. —Two  thorough  weeding**, 
with  a  little  attention  in  snipping  out  ir- 
a-egular  interlopers,  sufficed  to  keep  the 
bed  clean  the  year  through.  Herein,  as 
stated,  I  experienced  the  benefits  of  a  clean 
soil.  Had  T  used  manure  instead  of  nat- 
ural mold  there  would  have  been  far  more 
of  this  business  on  iny  hands.  A  cover- 
ing of  green  moss,  which  formed  011  the 
•surface  of  the  boxes  toward  the  latter  part 
of  summer,  gave  me  some  apprehension, 
and  I  broke  it  up  once  by  stirring  the  soil 
between  the  young  plants  and  omitting 
an  irrigation  or  two;  but  it  came  back 
<luring  the  winter,  and  I  allowed  it  to  re- 
main a*  no  harm  appeared  to  result.  In 
the  next  planting  I  obviated  this  difficulty 


by.  making  the  covering  of  clean  sand  in- 
stead of  the  prepared  soil. 

ENEMIES  TO  THE  YOUNO-  PLANTS.— I 
lost  a  number  of  plants  through  the  dep- 
redations of  a  pair  of  linnets,  which 
seemed  to  take  great  delight  in  nipping 
off  the  tender  new  growth.  I  succeeded 
finally  in  scaring  the  little  fiends  away. 
The  next  trouble  came  from  a  family  of 
toads  that  attempted  to  squat  on  my 
claim.  These  I  carried  out  by  the  hind 
legs.  A  rabbit  got  into  the  inclosure  on 
one  occasion  and  mowed  down  some  of 
the  trees.  He  did  not  come  again.  These, 
with  the  damping  off,  were  the  only  fatal- 
ities which  overtook  my  young  nursery. 
But  under  different  circumstances  ivew 
enemies  might  appear.  It  is  advisable 
for  one  to  keep  a  sharp  lookout  continu- 
ally, for,  in  the  words  of  the  hymn,  "Ten 
thousand  foes  arise." 

PROTECTION  FROM  ('OLD.— During  two 
or  three  cold  spells  which  occurred  in  the 
winter,  I  kept  the  young  trees  covered 
with  gunny  sacks  and  such  other  old 
cloths  as  were  available. 

THE  OUTCOME.— In  June,  one  year  after 
planting  the  seeds,  I  was  ready  to  transfer 
my  stock  to  the  nursery  rows.  From  the 
18,000  seeds  planted  there  were  10,000  trees, 
ranging  in  height  from  four  to  twelve 
inches.  Had  I  chosen  to  sell  them  they 
would  have  brought  me  two  and  one-half 
cents  apiece,  or  an  aggregate  of  $250, 
which  would  have  paid  fairly  for  the  in- 
vestment and  labor. 


CHAPTER  II. 

PLANTING  THE  NURSERY. 


LOCATION.— Much  may  be  said  about 
locating  a  nursery,  but  all  the  rules  pre- 
scribed can  not  obviate  the  necessity  for  a 
study  of  the  special  requirements  in  each 
case.  To  a  certain  extent,  every  nursery 
is  a  law  unto  itself.  There  are  peculiari- 
ties of  soil,  of  situation,  of  surroundings, 
of  climate,  which  must  be  considered 
.jointly  and  severally.  So  far  as  lies  in 


human  prevision,  every  obstacle  ought  to 
be  anticipated  and  forestalled.  A  failure 
to  do  this  in  some  apparently  trivial  par- 
ticular may  entail  endless  unnecessary 
labor,  vexations,  losses,  and  perhaps  ulti- 
mate discouragement  and  disaster.  Some 
good  man  has  said  there  are  no  little  sins; 
in  nursery  planting  there  are  no 
mistakes. 


32 


THE  ORANGE; 


GENERAL  REQUIREMENTS.  —  The  re- 
quirements of  a  nursery  may  be  generally 
stated  as  follows: 

1.  Accessibility    and    convenience   to 
market. 

2.  A  rich,  mellow  soil. 

3.  A  warm  situation. 

4.  Abundance  of  water. 

5.  Convenient  irrigation. 

SOIL.— Provided  the  elements  of  strength 
are  there,  the  looser  and  more  friable  the 
soil  the  better  the  trees  will  flourish. 
Any  ground  that  bakes  hard  should  be 
avoided.  Do  not  plant  your  nursery  on 
adobe  land.  Trees  cannot  flourish  with 
their  roots  in  vulcanized  casings.  But,  in 
avoiding  the  extreme  of  stiff  soils,  do  not 
run  to  the  other  extreme  of  too  sandy 
ground.  A  certain  proportion  of  humus 
and  some  tenacity  in  the  soil  are  necessary 
to  retain  moisture  and  to  give  the  trees  <\ 
good  footing.  Then,  too,  bear  in  mind 
that,  by  and  by,  when  it  comes  to  taking 
up,  the  trees,  you  may  want  to  ball  the 
roots.  This  you  cannot  do  unless  the 
earth  has  a  good  deal  of  coherence.  Ball- 
ing is  not  a  sine  qua  non,  as  will  be  ex- 
plained subsequently,  and  I  would  not 
advise  the  abandonment  of  a  generally 
good  location  for  the  single  objection  that 
the  ground  is  too  loose  to  ball.  The  choco- 
late-colored clayey  sands  or  sandy  clays, 
which  abound  in  our  foothills,  are  the 
happy  medium  of  a  nursery  soil,  being 
stiff  enough  to  ball,  but  not  inclined  to 
bake,  if  fairly  cultivated. 

WELL  DRAINED.— It  is  necessary  that 
the  ground  for  a  nursery  should  be  well 
drained;  i.  e.,  there  should  be  no  standing 
water  close  to  the  surface,  rendering  the 
soil  cold  and  sodden. 

TOPOGRAPHY.— Opinions  are  divided  as 
to  the  comparative  advantages  of  a  level 
piece  of  ground  or  one  with  a  gentle  slope 
to  the  southward.  The  sloping  land  has 
the  warmer  exposure  and  is  likely  to  be 
better  drained.  The  level  land  is  more 
convenient  for  irrigation.  But  whether 
the  ground  be  flat  or  sloping,  before  the 
trees  are  planted  it  should  be  graded  to  as 
near  a  perfect  plane  as  possible.  Leave 
no  basins  or  hummocks  anywhere;  they 
won't  do,  as  you  will  find  at  your  cost  if 
you  attempt  to  run  water  over  them, 
through  them  or  around  them.  Your 


graded  plane  may  have  a  uniform  pitch  of 
a  foot  in  one  hundred  in  the  direction  you 
intend  to  irrigate;  half  a  foot  would  be 
better  in  most  localities.  If  the  nursery 
site  is  on  a  hillside  sloping  to  the  south r 
make  the  pitch  for  the  purposes  of  irriga- 
tion east  or  west.  You  cannot,  with  ad- 
vantage, run  water  down  any  considera- 
ble slope. 

PREPARATION  OF  THE  SOIL.  —  The 
ground  having  been  graded,  it  should  be 
double-plowed  and  harrowed.  This,  if  it 
be  the  kind  here  recommended,  will  re- 
duce the  soil  to  the  requisite  tilth.  If  not 
perfectly  pulveri/ed  with  this  treatment, 
it  should  be  reduced  still  further  with  har- 
row or  clod-crusher;  but  the  better  plan 
would  be  to  pick  out  some  other  locality 
for  your  nursery. 

ARRANGEMENT  OF  THK  NURSERY.  — 
When  a  nursery  is  planted  on  level 
ground,  it  is  considered  advisable  to  run 
the  rows  north  and  south,  in  order  that 
the  sun  may  have  the  greatest  play  upon 
the  ground.  On  a  southern  slope  the  rows 
should  be  east  and  west,  the  matter  of 
irrigation  there  assuming  paramount  im- 
portance. Located  on  more  broken  or 
irregular  ground — say  a  series  of  knolls 
or  hillsides— the  contour  system  is  adopt- 
ed, running  the  rows  in  curves  and  re- 
flexes— keeping  always  at  a  certain  level 
practicable  for  leading  water  along  the 
rows.  The  greatest  objection  to  this  sys- 
tem is  that  it  makes  cultivation  difficult, 
.sometimes  precluding  the  use  of  horse 
power  altogether. 

ROOM  FOR  ACCESS  AND  WORKING.— If 
your  nursery  is  a  large  one,  divide  it  into 
tablones,  with  drive-ways  between  and 
the  rows  not  more  than  one  hundred  and 
fifty  feet  long.  This  gives  convenient  ac- 
cess to  all  parts  of  the  nursery,  and  you 
do  not  have  to  carry  the  trees  a  great  dis- 
tance in  loading  them  into  a  wagon.  It 
also  allows  space  for  turning,  in  cultiva- 
tion. 

LAYING  OFF  THK  GROUND. — The  estab- 
lished way  of  planting  nursery  is  in  square 
or  parallelogram  form,  with  rows  four 
feet  apart  and  trees  a  foot  apart  in  the 
rows.  This  gives  10,800  trees  to  the  acre. 
The  operation  of  laying  oft*  is  very  simple. 
The  outlines  of  the  nursery  or  of  the  tab- 
lone  being  established,  stick  stakes  along 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


two  opposite  ends  to  define  the  rows. 
Then  stretch  a  rope  or  chain  across  the 
ground  from  stake  to  stake,  and  along 
this  line  plant  the  trees  a  foot  apart. 

Various  labor-saving  methods  are  in 
vogue  for  spacing  oft'  the  ground  along 
the  line,  but  none  more  ingenious  and 
practical  than  that  recommended  by  Mr. 
Thomas  A.  Garey  in  his  pioneer  work  on 
California  orange  culture,  lie  says:  "For 
marking  the  spaces  in  the  row,  use  a  tool 
made  similar  to  a  hand- roller  with  trian- 
gular pieces  a  few  inches  long  fastened 
lengthwise  and  a  foot  apart.  Four  feet  in 
circumference,  or  a  small  fraction  more 
than  fifteen  and  one-fourth  inches  in  di- 
ameter, is  a  convenient  size  for  the  roller. 
To  use  this  tool,  take  hold  of  the  handles, 
place  the  roller  on  the  tightly-stretched 
line,  and  push  it  forward  or  draw  it  after 
you  along  the  line;  the  pieces  on  the  roller 
will  mark  crosswise  of  the  line  at  regular 
distances  of  a  foot.  If  any  other  distance 
be  desired,  it  can  be  regulated  by  the  di- 
ameter of  the  roller  and  the  distance  be- 
tween the  strips.  Remove  the  line  to  the 
next  proposed  row.  This  leaves  a  mark 
lengthwise  crossed  at  regular  distances, 
ready  to  receive  the  plants." 

This  implement  is  available  in  planting 
large  nurseries.  For  a  small  nursery,  of 
course,  the  labor  of  making  the  roller 
would  be  greater  than  the  marking  oft'  by 
Home  more  clumsy  method. 

PLANTING.— The  accepted  time  for  plant- 
ing a  nursery  is  in  April  and  May,  when 
damp,  cool  weather  is  apt  to  prevail.  But, 
with  proper  safeguards,  planting  may  be 
done  in  almost  any  month  of  the  year 
when  there  is  no  danger  from  frost  or 
very  excessive  heat.  If  your  trees  are 
propagated  as  mine  were,  in  boxes,  trans- 
planting is  simple  and  sure.  The  work- 
man carries  a  box  with  him  along  the  line 
and  transfers  each  tree,  with  its  ball  of 
earth  inclosing  the  roots,  to  a  place  in  the 
row. 

The  implement  used  for  this  is  the  in- 
vention of  Judge  R.  M.  Widney,  of  Los 
Angeles,  and  known  as  the  Widney  trans- 
planter. Not  only  is  it  a  great'  labor-sav- 
ing device,  but  its  use  amounts  almost  to 
a  guaranty  of  the  life  of  the  plant.  With 
it  I  set  a  nursery  of  4000  trees  in  the 
months  of  June  and  July.  Very  hot 


weather  followed,  and  the  trees  were  not 
shaded,  yet  my  loss  did  not  exceed  one 
per  cent. 

THE  WIDNEY  TRANSPLANTER. — The  ac- 
companying cut  represents  the  trans- 
p lanter  com- 
plete. The  cyl- 
inder ^1  is  first 
used  to  cut  a 
hole,  />,  in  the 
ground  where 
you  wish  to  set 
the  plant.  Next 
the  transplanter 
is  set  down  over 
t  ho  plant,  so  that 
t.he  stem  and' 
leaves  run  up 
TRANSPLANTER  COM-  within  theins4de 
PLETE.  cylinder  J5.  Tne- 

outside  cylinder  is  then  passed  down  into- 
the  ground,  giving  it  a  slight  rotary  mo- 
tion, until  you  have  cut  to  the  depth  de- 
sired, generally  two  or  four  inches.  In 
pressing  down  on  the  handles  care  mast 
be  taken  to  keep  the  hands  off  the  inside 
cylinder  B,  which  must  be  left  to  move- 
freely.  The  rotary  motion  gives  a  sharp, 
drawing  cut. 

After  cutting  down  around  the  plant  to> 
the  depth  required,  lift  the  transplanter 
out  of  the  ground.  It 
will  bring  up  the  plant 
with  a  solid  plug  of 
earth,  C,  inside  t he- 
cylinder.  Now  put 
the  transplanter  001*- 
taining  the  plant  into* 
the  hole  in  the  ground 
Z>,  first  cut.  Set  it 
down  to  the  bottom  of 
the  hole,  so  that  the 
bottom  of  the  plug  of 
earth  rests  on  the  bot- 
tom of  the  hole;  place 
INSIDE  CYLINDER,  the  two  thumbs  on  top 
of  the  inside  cylinder,  retaining  the  hold  on 
the  handles  with  the  fingers,  and  close  tbe^ 
hand,  thus  drawing  up  the  outside  cylin- 
der, while  the  inside  cylinder  thus  holds 
the  plug  of  dirt  in  the  hole.  The  plug  of 
dirt  is  thus  forced  out  of  the  transplanter 
as  the  wad  is  forced  out  of  a  pop-gun. 
When  this  is  done,  the  plant,  with  a  solid 
plug  of  earth,  C,  will: be  left  in  a  hole  sur- 


34 


THE  ORANGE; 


PLANT   RAISED   WITH 
PLUG   OF  EARTH. 


rounded  by  unmoved  dirt.  Tamp  the 
earth  a  little  to  settle  it  about  the  plug, 
and  the  transplant- 
ing is  complete. 
After  a  few  experi- 
ments the  work  can 
)>e  done  with  great 
rapidity. 

Concerning  t  h  e 
planter  Judge  \Vid- 
ney  says:  "Three 
years  ago  I  com- 
menced to  set  out 
some  200  acres  of 
eucalyptus  trees.  I 
raised  the  plants 
and  put  them  in 
boxes  20x24,  setting  them  two  inches  apart 
—the  usual  plan.  To  set  them  out  in  .the 
field  and  not  irri- 
gate, and  do  the 
work  rapidly,  was 
the  question.  The 
resul  t  was  t  his  trail  s 
planter.  With  it  l!nl-»  \r'lx!s.v, ',rRAXS~ 
one  man  will  take 

the  boxes  of  plants  and  set  out  <>oo  to 
1000  trees  per  day,  nine  feet  apart.  1  eet 
•out  over  100,000  plants,  and  not  one  plant 
jn  100  died  from  transplanting. '' 

IRRIGATION*.— As  soon  as  planted  the 
trees  should  be  irrigated.  This  may  be 
t>est  accomplished  by  making  a  slight 
trench  along  each  side  of  the  row  and  a 
few  inches  therefrom,  throwing  the  dirt 
away  from  the  trees.  Then  lead  the  water 
-along,  ami  after  it  has  thoroughly  soaked 
away  use  a  hoe  to  draw  the  displaced 
earth  back.  The  dry  soil  being  left  on 
top  acts  as  a  mulch  to  prevent  evapora- 
tion. Under  no  circumstances  should  the 
soil  remain  unstirred  after  an  irrigation, 
as  it  will  bake  and  dry  out,  leaving  the 
trees  in  a  worse  condition  than  if  they 
they  had  been  given  no  water  at  all.  If 
the  weather  be  warm  and  dry  at  the  time 
of  planting  your  nursery,  an  irrigation 
<3ach  week  is  not  too  much  to  begin  with. 
The  soil  should  not  be  allowed  to  dry 
within  half  an  inch  of  the  surface.  Later, 
as  the  trees  become  well  rooted,  an  irriga- 
tion each  fortnight,  and  then  one  each 
month,  will  suffice.  The  second  season 
the  cultivation  may  be  doue  by  horse- 
power. 


AFTER  CARE.— Directly  after  planting 
equip  yourself  with  knife  or  scissors  and 
trim  up  the  little  trees.  Some  of  them 
will  have  two  or  three  stems,  and  some 
will  be  throwing  an  undue  proportion  of 
their  vitality  into  some  favored  limb. 
Trim  them  to  a  single  stem  and  start 
them  up  in  the  way  they  should  go. 
Afterwards  replace  all  trees  that  die,  so  as 
to  keep  your  rows  full  and  regular. 
When  grown  to  the  height  of  two  or  three 
feet,  your  trees,  or  a  part  of  them,  may  re- 
quire staking.  If  so,  don't  neglect  this 
part  of  the  work.  You  may  think  that 
the  stalk  will  be  cut  down  after  a  while, 
in  budding,  and  it  doesn't  make  much 
difference  whether  it  grows  straight  or 
not.  Hut  it  does.  The  more  symmetrical 

•  you  keep  your  nursery,  the  more  pride 
you  will  take  in  it,  the  better  you  will  do 
your  work,  and  it  will  thrive  propor- 
tionately. 

FKKK  FROM  IXSKOTS.— Watch  your  nur- 
sery with  eagle  e\*e  that  none  of  the  pes- 
tiferous scale  insects  obtain  lodgment 
there.  If  once  thoroughly  inoculated 
with  red  or  white  scale,  it  is  all  over  with 
your  project;  nobody  would  buy  the  trees 
afterward,  even  though  you  succeeded  in" 
clearing  out  the  pests.  It  is  a  good  plan 

»to  wash  the  trees  once  or  twice  every  year 
with  a  decoction  of  whale  oil  soap,  as  a 
measure  of  prevention. 

FREE  FROM  WEEDS.— I  would  enjoin 
the  most  thorough  cultivation  of  the  nur- 
sery, summer  and  winter,  and  keeping  it 
entirely  free  from  weeds.  But  the  pains- 
taking nurseryman,  will  do  this  without 
special  admonition. 

PRUNING. — When  the  trees  have  been  in 
nursery  one  year,  they  should  be  pruned 
slightly.  He  careful  not  to  carry  the 
pruning  to  excess,  and  especially  avoid 
making  long  willowy  switches  with  a 
mere  tuft  of  leaves  a-top.  Rather  follow 
the  plan  of  keeping  the  small  tree  sym- 
metrical and  well  proportioned,  exactly 
as  you  would  a  large  one.  Dispense  with 
th«i  lower  branches  gradually,  and  the 
trunk  will  grow  up  stocky  and  strong 
enough  to  support  itself  without  staking. 
When  trees  are  budded  at  the  end  of  the 
first  year  in  nursery,  little  pruning  is  re- 
quired; simply  enough  on  one  side  to 
make  mom  for  the  bud;  and,  after  that 
starts,  the  entire  top  is  cut  away. 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  III. 


B  V  D  D  I  N  G  . 


The  general  theory  of  extending  and 
perpetuating  varieties  of  fruits  by  bud- 
ding is  too  well  understood  to  require 
discussion  here.  While  it  may  be  said 
that  the  principle  has  found  acceptance 
throughout  the  domain  of  horticulture, 
with  the  orange  it  has  remained  a  mooted 
question  longer  than  with  any  other  fruit. 
But  here  also  science  is  gradually  and 
surely  gaining  the  day.  It  has  been 
urged  against  budding  the  orange  that 
the  operation  induces  precocity,  thereby 
dwarfing  the  tree,  curtailing  its  produc- 
tive capacity  and  shortening  its  life.  That 
budding  induces  precocity  there  is  no 
question.  While  a  seedling  tree  can  not 
be  relied  upon  to  come  into*  bearing  until 
eight  years  old,  a  budded  tree  will  bear  at 
live  (*.  e.,  the  stock  being  five,  the  budded 
growth  three).  Whether  budding  dwarfs 
the  tree  or  not  depends  entirely  upon  the 
habit  of  the  tree  from  which  the  bud 
•comes.  I  have  seen  full-sized  standard 
trees  from  buds  of  the  Konah,  Wolf  skill's 
Best  and  Cuban.  The  Washington  Navel, 
-..  Michael,  Mediterranean  Sweet  and 
Malta  Blood  make  under-sized  trees.  But 
by  reason  of  their  lesser  size  a  greater 
number  may  be  set  to  the  acre,  and  thus, 
in  full  bearing,  the  yield  may  equal  that 
of  standard  trees.  But  the  quality  waived 
•entirely; — allowing  a  smaller  yield  from 
budded  trees— the  difference  in  quality 
must  determine  the  matter  in  their  favor. 
In  the  scales  of  value  a  box  of  uniform 
Navels  will  outweigh  three  boxes  of  hit- 
.and-miss  seedlings.  It  must  be  remem- 
bered that  there  is  no  exact  perpetuation 
of  excellence  by  the  seed.  A  seedling  is  a 
seedling,  whether  the  seed  be  brought 
from  Cuba,  Australia  or  the  Mediterranean 
country.  The  tree  from  foreign  seed, 
being  grown  to  maturity  in  our  soil,  gen- 
erally partakes  of  the  characteristics  of 
native  stock;— producing  a  fruit  with  thick 
rind,  and  averaging  with  the  rest  in  size 
and  flavor.  There  is,  in  fact,  no  likelihood 
that  any  seedling  will  improve  on  these 
varieties  already  originated  here,  and 
which  have  been  given  the  distinction  of 
•A  name,  such  as  Wilson's  and  Wolfskin's 
,  while  there  are  mnuy  chances  for  it 


to  drop  far  below  mediocrity.  With  bud- 
ded fruit  the  case  is  quite  different.  Uni- 
formity of  excellence  is  obtained  in  it. 
The  evil  results  of  the  precocity  alluded 
to  may  be  obviated  by  rigorously  thinning 
the  fruit  as  the  tree  comes  into  bearing. 
In  our  climate,  the  tendency  of  all  trees 
is  to  overbear  at  first;  and  if  this  is  not 
curbed,  their  health  and  productiveness 
may  be  seriously  impaired.  Budded  or- 
ange trees  do  not  stand  alone  in  this  mat- 
ter, though  they  may  present  an  extreme 
case.  The  fact  remains  that,  if  a  man 
buds  his  trees  and  devotes  to  them  some 
extra  attention,  he  may  hasten  his  returns 
three  years  and  enhance  the  value  of  his 
fruit.  Budding  is  in  line  with  all  other 
advanced  scientific  methods.  What  labor- 
saving  machinery  is  to  manual  labor,  and 
thoroughbred  live  stock  to  native  breeds, 
the  budded  orange  tree  is  to  the  seedling. 
Do  not  be  behind  the  times.  Bud  your 
trees.  Having  determined  this  matter  to 
my  satisfaction,  at  least,  I  come  to  the 
modus  operandi  of  budding.  I  am  in- 
debted to  Mr.  J.  M.  Warner,  a  budder  of 
long  experience,  for  many  practical  sug- 
gestions contained  herein. 

TIME.— Bads  are  inserted  in  the  fall- 
October  and  November — and  in  the  spring 
and  early  summer — March  to  the  last  of 
June,  the  latter  being  much  the  more 
popular  season.  The  exact  time  for  bud- 
ding depends  indirectly  upon  the  weather 
and  directly  upon  the  condition  of  the 
stock  to  be  budded.  Buds  inserted  in 
the  fall  come  under  the  designation  of 
"dormant"  as  they  do  not  start  until  the 
following  spring.  Then,  of  course,  they 
begin  early  if  at  all,  and  therein  lies  the 
only  advantage  of  fall  budding.  On  the 
other  hand,  there  is  great  danger  that  the 
buds  may  be  killed  by  severe  cold  during 
the  winter.  Midsummer  budding,  al- 
though feasible,  is  condemned  by  the  best 
authorities.  The  lateness  of  starting 
makes  a  short  season's  growth,  and  the 
wood  being-  prematurely  hardened  by 
cold  weather,  the  tree  is  stunted.  The 
earlier  in  the  spring  that  budding  can  be 
done  in  conformity  with  right  principles, 
the  better. 


36 


THE  ORANGE; 


CONDITION  OF  THE  STOCK. — When  the 
bark  slips  readily  upon  the  stock,  as  it 
slipped  on  the  willows  in  our  whistle- 
making  days,  you  may  be  sure  it  is  in 
condition  to  be  budded.  Theoretically 
stated,  the  tree  is  then  full  of  sap  and  in 
the  active,  growing  condition  requisite  for 
infusing  life  into  the  extraneous  bud  in- 
serted in  the  bark.  Experts  may  venture 
to  anticipate  this  condition  a  little  and  bud 
trees  when  they  are  obliged  to  raise  the 
bark  with  a  knife,  but  they  do  it  at  the 
risk  of  losing  their  labor.  A  quick  growth 
of  the  tree  immmediately  after  each  bud- 
ding is  done  will  alone  render  the  opera- 
tion successful.  Experienced  budders 
claim  that  a  larger  percentage  of  buds 
grow  of  'those  inserted  in  the  new  of  the 
moon  than  in  the  old. 

AGE  OF  STOCKS.— Trees  planted  iu  nur- 
sery in  the  spring  are  sometimes  budded 
the  following  spring.  But  the  majority 
of  nurserymen  do  not  bud  their  trees 
until  the  end  of  the  second  year  in  nur- 
sery. The  stoeks  then  shoot  the  buds 
more  uniformly  and  vigorously  than  at 
the  Earlier  age.  Budding  may  be  done 
from  this  time  forward  until  the  tree  is 
fully  grown,  but  the  difficulty  of  starting 
increases  with  age.  Ordinarily  there  is  no 
reason  for  delaying  the  operation  later 
than  the  end  of  the  second  year  in  nursery. 

IMPLEMENTS  REQUIRED.— The  outfit  re- 
quired for  budding  comprises  a  pair  of 
pruning  shears  of  the  ordinary  pattern;  a 
budding  knife,  a  whetstone  and  strap,  a 
brush  and  some  tying  twine. 

The  budding  knife  has  a  prolongation 
of  the  handle,  being  a  bone  spatula,  like 
the  end  of  a  paper  cutter.  This  attach- 
ment is  of  service  in  lifting  the  bark  with- 
out lacerating  it  after  the  incision  has 
been  made.  The  whetstone,  used  with 
either  oil  or  water,  should  be  line,  and 
small  enough  to  carry  in  the  pocket.  For 
puttingthe  finishing  edgeon  the  knife  use 
a  razor-strop  or  a  strop  improvised  from 
a  piece  of  leather  fastened  to  a  stick  and 
oiled.  The  pruning  shears  or  pocket- 
knife  should  be  employed  in  the  heavy 
work,  such  as  cutting  branches  for  buds, 
pruning,  etc.  The  budding  knife  is  then 
used  only  for  cutting  out  the  buds  and  in- 
cising the  tree,  and  its  keenness  is  not  un- 
duly impaired.  It  is  best  to  bud  the  trees 


close  to  the  ground,  for  the  reason  tha-t 
the  point  of  juncture  of  bud  and  stock  be 
comes  less  prominent  and  unsightly,  and,, 
in  transplanting,  may  be  coyered  up  en- 
tirely. Any  sort  of  brush  that  is  con- 
venient will  serve  for  dusting  off  the 
body  of  the  tree,  so  that  the  knife  shall 
not  come  in  contact  with  grit. 

The  buds  should  be  inserted  with  a  view 
to  a  voiding  accidents  in  irrigating  and  cul- 
tivating. If  the  rows  run  north  and  south 
insert  the  bud  on  the  south  side  of  the 
stock,  so  that  it  shall  not  grow  out  into 
the  open  space  and  thus  be  subject  to  ac- 
cident. The  prevaling  winds  should  also 
be  considered.  As  the  tendency  of  the 
sprout  is  to  grow  out  from  the  stock,  if  the 
winds  can  be  brought  into  service  to  force 
it  back  upon  the  stock  and  into  an  upright 
position,  so  much  the  better. 

TWINE.— A  soft,  loosely-twisted  twine, 
from  ten  to  fourteen  ply,  and  known  as 
"budding  twine,"  is  in  universal  use 
among  budders.  The  size  is  varied,  ac- 
cording to  the  size  of  stocks.  A  conven- 
ient way  of  preparing  the  twine  for  use  i* 
to  reel  it  upon  a  board  the  required  length 
for  the  pieces,  and  then  cut  it  at  both  ends 
of  the  board.  Count  the  pieces,  and  when 
done  with  them  you  will  know  how  many 
buds  you  have  inserted.  Sling  the  strings 
in  a  loop  of  twine  to  your  person,  and  you 
have  them  ready  to  draw  upon  as  required. 

CHOOSING  BUDS.— The  best  buds  to  in- 
sert are  those  which  appear  large  and 
plump,  as  though  just  ready  to  start. 
They  are  found  upon  the  latest  new 
growth  that  has  rounded  and  hardened. 
The  light  green,  new  growth,  known  as 
"  three  cornered,"  should  be  avoided,  the 
buds  being  immature  and  lacking  in  vital- 
ity. Likewise  buds  on  old  limbs  (?'.  e.,  of 
a  former  year's  growth,)  are  not  desirable, 
as  they  are  slow  to  start.  Buds  cut  from 
very  old  and  hard  wood  have  been  known 
to  lie  dormant  four  years  before  starting 
to  grow.  Upon  the  section  of  limb  which 
you  select  all  of  the  buds  may  not  be  de- 
sirable, and  you  should  use  only  the  best, 
rejecting  the  others.  If  thorny  varieties 
are  used  discard  those  with  the  largest 
thorns. 

PREPARING  THE  BUDS.— Having  select- 
ed the  limbs  from  which  you  wish  to  take 
your  buds,  cut  them  into  lengths  ofi  six  w 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  OALIFOKN1A. 


tight  inches,  convenient  for  handling.  At 
the  same  time  cut  oil*  the  leaves,  severing 
the  stem  close  to  the  buds.  If  the  leaves 
are  allowed  to  remain  they  draw  the  sap 
'from  the  stock,  weakening  the  buds.  The 
points  of  thorns  may  be  clipped  to  avoid 
annoyance  in  handling.  If  the  buds  are 
to  be  kept  any  time  or  shipped,  the  twigs 
should  be  packed  in  some  damp  material. 
The  green  moss  which  forms  on  the  sur- 
face of  ponds  or  reservoirs  exposed  to  the 
sun  furnishes  an  excellent  wrapping  when 
dried.  This  should  be  dampened  only 
enough  to  keep  the  stems  from  drying 
out,  and  they  maybe  thus  kept  a  fortnight 
or  more  without  damage.  While  budding 
keep  the  principal  part  of  your  stock  cov- 
ered with  a  damp  cloth,  having  only  a 
*tick  or  two  in  hand  at  a  time. 


CUTTING  THK  BUDS.— Hold  the  stick  in 
n he  left  hand,  top  toward  your  body  ;  fore- 
finger sustaining  the  stick  below  the  bud, 
and  thumb  far  enough  above  the  bud  to 
be  out  of  danger  from  the  knife.  Com- 
mencing about  a  half  inch  below  the  bud, 
make  a  slanting  cut  into  the  twig,  raising 
the  bark  and  a  thin  shaving  of  wood  be- 
neath it.  Draw  the  knife  forward  with  a 
straight  cut  underneath  the  bud,  and  when 
this  has  been  severed,  with  the  bark  and 
wood  adhering,  bring  the  edge  to  the  sur- 
face with  a  rounding -motion. 

The  slip  thus  taken  is  about  an.  inch 
long:  the  part  below  the  bud  a  half  inch, 
the  bud  and  leaf  stem  a  quarter,  and  the 
part  above  the  bud  a  quarter.  It  is  neces- 
sary to  take  only  a  very  little  wood  from 
the  twig  in  serving  the  bud.  I  have 
known  p^ns-taking  nurserymen,  when 
operating  on  young  stock,  to  hollow  out 
the  under  side  of  the  bud  longitudinally, 
so  as  to  make  it  conform  more  closely  to 
the  body  of  the  tree  to  which  it  was  ap- 
plied. The  knife  used  for  taking  off  buds 
.should  have  a  keen  edge. 

CUTTING  THE  STOCKS  AND  INSERTING 
THE  BUDS.— At  a  point  not  more  than  six 
.inches  from  the  ground  select  a  smooth 


place  on  the  stock  and  make  a  short  per- 
pendicular incision.  This  is  called  the 
longitudinal  cut.  The  knife  simply  pene- 
trates the  bark.  The  cut  should  not  be 
longer  than  the  bud  (one  inch),  and  if  the 
bark  is  free  it  may  be  somewhat  less,  as 
the  lower  end  of  the  bud-base  can  pass 
under  the  bark  when  shoved  down,  mak- 
ing it  more  secure  and  requiring  less  ty- 
ing. At  the  top  end  of  the  longitudinal 
cut  make  a  transverse  cut  long  enough  to 
admit  the  bud.  In  making  the  transverse 
cut  incline  the  edge  of  the  knife  down- 
ward, and  then,  as  the  bark  is  penetrated, 
spread  the  gash  by  twisting  the  knife  up- 
ward and  carrying  the  knife  outward  from 
the  tree.  In  so  doing  be  careful  not  to 
tear  the  bark.  This  completes  the  incis- 
ion. Next  pass  the  lower  prong  of  the 
bud-base  in  at  the  place  where  the  two 
cuts  cross,  and,  with  the  thumb  of  the 
right  hand,  press  the  bud  down  gently 
into  the  opening.  Instead  of  using  the 
thumb,  which  might  in  some  instances 
bruise  the  bud,  some  budders  insert  the 
point  of  the  budding  knife  in  the  bud- 
base,  just  above  the  bud,  and  press  down 
with  that.  While  the  bud  is  being  shoved 
into  position  the  thumb  and  fore-finger  of 
the  left  hand  should  be  pressed  against 
the  bark  on  each  side  of  the  longitudinal 
cut  to  assist  in  guiding  the  bud  and  to 
prevent  a  rupture  of  the  bark.  When  the 
top  of  the  bud-base  is  even  with  the  trans- 
verse cut  it  is  in  proper  position.  The 
base  is  then  nearly  or  quite  inclosed  in 
the  bark,  and  the  bud  with  its  leaf-stem 
and  thorn  (if  it  have  a  thorn)  protrudes 
just  below  the  point  where  the  cuts  cross. 

TYING.— One  of  the  pieces  of  twine  al- 
ready prepared  is  then  passed  about  the 
tree,  making  usually  three  wraps  above 
the  bud  and  two  below,  the  tying  being 
done  so  that  there  is  one  wrap  less  on  the 
side  opposite  the  bud.  The  twine  should 
be  drawn  so  tight  that  it  can  not  be  easily 
slipped,  and  should  pass  close  to  the  eye 
of  the  bud  above  and  below.  The  bud 
first  adheres  at  the  upper  extremity,  and 
especial  care  should  be  taken  to  have  it 
well  wrapped  there. 

INDICATIONS.— In  between  two  and  six 
weeks  after  the  insertion  of  the  buds,  if 
they  adhere  to  the  stock,  the  leaf  stem 
next  the  bud  will  begin  to  loosen  and 


38 


THE  ORANGE; 


drop  oft'.  Oil  the  contrary,  if  it  shrivels 
and  clings  to  the  bud,  the  indication  is 
that  the  bud  is  dead. 

CUTTING  THE  STOCKS.— As  soon  as  one 
is  satisfied  that  the  buds  have  adhered  he 
should  cut  off  the  stocks  from  four  to  eight 
inches  aboye  the  bud,  the  larger  the  tree 
the  higher  up.  An  irrigation  and  cultiva- 
tion immediately  after  this  will  have  a 
good  effect  in  starting  the  bud.  Within  a 
month  after  cutting  away  the  stocks,  the 
strings  should  also  be  cut  and  removed, 
especially  the  wraps  above  the  bud. 

REBUDDING.— Trees  that  fail  to  start  the 
bud  should  be  rebudded  as  soon  as  possi- 
ble. If  the  first  work  has  been  done  early, 
there  will  be  time  to  rebud  the  skips  the 
(same  season. 

SPROUTS.— The  common  practice  is  to 
remove  all  sprouts  that  put  out  from  the 
stock  in  order  that  its  whole  vitality  may 
be  thrown  into  the  bud.  Some  think  the 
single  growth  of  the  bud  is  insufficient  to 
keep  the  stock  in  a  healthy  condition,  and 
for  the  first  few  months  leave  several 
sprouts,  keeping  them  subordinate  to  the 
bud.  If  any  sprouts  be  left  they  should 
be  on  the  opposite  side  to  the  bud  in  order 
that  they  may  not  interfere  with  its  up- 
ward growth.  They  should  be  occasion- 
ally nipped  off;  and,  finally,  when  the 
main  shoot  gets  fair  proportions,  the  in- 
terlopers may  be  dispensed  with  alto- 
gether. 

PRUNING. — If  the  growing  bud-sprout 
shows  too  great  a  tendency  to  branch,  it 
is  advisable  to  thumb-prune  it  somewhat 
or  to  shorten  in  the  lower  branches.  The 
new  growth  should  be  trained  to  sturdy 
proportions  and  an  upright  growth.  If 
staking  be  necessary,  stake  it,  but  make 
it  grow  upright  without  this  if  possible. 

CUTTING  AWAY  THK  STUBS.— When  the 
wood  of  the  budded  growth  shall  have 
hardened  up  somewhat,  cut  away  the 
stub  of  the  stock  close  to  the  point  of 
juncture.  Pare  the  stock  smooth,  and 
cover  with  paint,  shellac,  or  wax,  to  pre- 
vent the  wood  from  drying  out  and 
cracking. 

INFLUENCE;  OK  STOCK  ON  BUD.— While, 
in  theory,  the  budding  of  a  tree  amounts 
to  an  absolute  change  in  the  fruit,  substi- 
tuting the  variety  budded  for  that  of  the 
native  stock,  practice  demonstrates  that 


the  stock  still  exercises  an  influence- 
through  the  budded  growth.  This  influ- 
ence varies  with  different  fruits,  iu  some 
being  quite  imperceptible,  in  others  so 
pronounced  as  to  render  budding  nuga- 
tory. For  example,  the  lemon  may  be 
budded  upon  orange  stock  with  the  best 
results  ;  and,  in  fact,  it  has  come  to  be  a 
universal  custom  to  choose  orange  stock 
for  this  purpose  by  reason  of  its  greater 
hardiness.  But  with  the  orange  budded 
upon  lemon  stock  the  case  is  different ; 
deterioration  of  fruit  is  sure  to  follow.  At 
one  time  there  was  quite  a  furor  for  bud- 
ding choice  varieties  of  orange  upon  the 
stock  of  Chinese  lemon.  The  vigor  of  the 
stock  caused  a  marvelous  growth  in  the 
orange  buds,  and  the  experimenters  were 
in  high  feather  until  their  trees  came  into 
bearing.  Then  it  was  found  that  the  fruit 
was  large,  coarse,  pulpy  and  insipid,  be- 
ing neither  orange,  lemon,  nor  a  palatable 
hybrid. 

STANDARD  LOWERED  BY  REPEATED 
BUDDING.— It  is  safe  to  assume,  then,  tbat 
all  stocks  exercise  some  influence  on  their 
budded  fruit,  and  though  in  a  single  in- 
stance we  might  be  unable  to  perceive  it,, 
the  probability  is  that  several  generations 
of  buds,  each  taken  from  the  last  preced- 
•ing  and  each  inserted  in  the  same  stock, 
would  finally  bring  a  fruit  much  modified 
and  approaching  in  character  that  of  the 
seedling  operated  upon.  Thus  it  is  that, 
the  standard  of  certain  varieties  has  been 
lowered  by  successive  buddings.  A,  im- 
pressed by  the  excellence  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean Sweet,  obtained  buds  from  the 
stock  first  introduced  and  inserted  them, 
in  some  of  his  poorest  trees.  B  obtained* 
buds  from  A,  and  inserted  them  in  lemon 
stock.  Then  C  got  them  from  B  and  D- 
from  C,  and  so  the  retrograde  movement 
continued  until  the  product  of  the  last 
Mediterranean  Sweet  buds  was  found  to 
be  very  inferior.  Other  varieties  beside 
the  Mediterranean  Sweet  have  suffered  in 
this  way.  The  Australian  Navel,  which 
falls  short  of  its  twin  sister,  the  Riverside 
Navel,  is  one  of  the  victims. 

ORIGINAL  BUDS.— It  is  advisable  then , 
in  budding  to  a  choice  variety,  to  go  back 
to  the  original  stock  if  possible  ;  otherwise 
to  get  buds  only  one  degree  removed 
from  the  original,  and  those  grown  on 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


non-deteriorating  trees.  Too  much  faro 
cannot  be  exercised  in  this  matter  if  our 
standards  are  to  be  maintained. 

GRAFTING.— The  cheapness  and  greater 
convenience  of  budding  the  orange  has 
rendered  grafting  obselete.  A  nursery- 
man of  my  acquaintance  claims  that  he 
can  bring  the  orange  to  fruit  much  earlier 
by  grafting  than  by  budding,  and  has  ex- 
periments under  way  to  prove  his  asser- 
tion. It  is  possible  that  the  next  step  in 
scientific  culture  may  be  in  this  direction, 
but  I  deem  it  hardly  probably.  In  Flor- 
ida grafting  is  a  popular  method  of  con- 
verting the  wild  (Bigarade)  orange  to  the 
commercial  fruit.  Grafting  would  be  of 


equal  advantage  with  us  in  treating  old 
trees,  in  which  it  is  difficult  to  make  bud--* 
live. 

(.'ARK  OF  THK  l>i:j»DKD  8  JOCK. — The  care 
of  budded  nursery  .stook,  as  regards  culti- 
vation, irrigation,  staking  up,  pruning 
and  keeping  free  from  insects,  should  bo 
as  painstaking  as  that  enjoined  for  young 
seedlings.  When  the  buds  are  one  year 
old  and  the  stocks  two  or  three  (according 
to  the  age  at  budding;,  the  trees  are  suffi- 
ciently advanced  to  be  taken  up  and  trans- 
ferred to  the  orchard.  Of  this  transplant- 
ing I  shall  say  something  in  a  subsequent 
chapter. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

A  WORD  TO  THE  WISE. 


The  man  who  contemplates  planting  an 
orange  orchard  —  especially  the  man  of 
limited  means— ought  to  stop  and  think 
twice.  He  should  consider  that  it  is  a 
great  undertaking  to  raise  orange  trees; 
and  he  should  also  bear  in  mind  that, 
during  the  long  period  in  which  they  are 
attaining  maturity,  his  family  and  him- 
self must  have  a  living.  If,  after  weigh- 
ing the  matter  carefully,  he  comes  to  the 
conclusion  that  he  is  possessed  of  the  req- 
uisite courage,  perse verence,  energy  and 
thrift  for  the  undertaking,  with  a  natural 
taste  for  it  which  will  make  his  labors  and 
trials  endurable;  and  if  he  thinks  he  can 
see  his  way  clear  to  keep  the  pot  boiling 
through  several  non- producing  years, 
why,  let  him  go  ahead,  and  God  speed 
him!  He  is  embarking  in  a  good  enter- 
prise, and  one  that  will,  surely  bring  its 
reward  if  intelligently  carried  through. 

Too  many  men  undertake  the  growing 
of  an  orange  grove  without  fully  compre- 
hending the  magnitude  of  the  task.  When 
it  is  past  the  time  for  them  to  retire  with- 
out sacrifice,  they  find  out  that  it  was  a 
fancy,  not  a  well  -  settled  purpose,  that 
first  possessed  them,  and  the  labors  in- 


volved are  too  onerous  to  be  borne;  or, 
their  means  having  run  out,  they  get  into 
debt,  mortgage  the  farm,  and  then,  per- 
haps, as  the  trees  are  just  about  to  bear, 
the  result  of  all  their  labors  and  sacrifices 
is  swept  away!  I  do  not  propose  to  read 
anybody  a  lecture.  Neither  do  I  wish  to 
discourage  any  who  have  reasonable 
chances  of  success  from  entering  the  field 
of  orange  growing;  but,  if  a  candid  word 
of  mine  may  set  some  over-sanguine  man 
to  thinking,  and  avert  from  him  the  heart- 
burnings incident  to  the  course  above  out- 
lined, that  word  shall  not  pass  unspoken. 
If,  my  reader,  you  have  thoughts  of 
growing  an  orange  orchard,  and  after 
looking  the  4  difficulties  squarely  in  the 
face,  you  conclude  that  you  can  overcome 
them;  and  if  you  would,  to  that  end,  be 
advised  concerning  approved  theories  and 
established  methods,  follow  me  through 
the  succeeding  chapters  and  I  will  lay 
them  before  you.  Remember  that  in  our 
age  no  man  can  afford  to  ignore  the  ex- 
perience of  others;  and  he  who  informs 
himself  most  thoroughly  is  the  one  who 
encounters  least  mishaps  and  fir  ally  com- 
mands success. 


40 


THE  GRANGE; 


CHAPTER  V. 


LOCATING  AN  GRANGE  ORCHARD, 


Having  determined  to  grow  oranges, 
•one  should  address  himself  to  the  task  of 
obtaining  the  best  of  everything  re- 
quired;—the  best  location  and  soil;  the 
'best  water  right;  the  best  trees  of  the  best 
varieties;  arid  then  he  should  plant  them 
and  care  for  them  in  the  best  manner,  and 
he  may  count  with  certainty  on  the  best 
results.  If  he  is  to  go  through  the  labor 
and  trials  of  growing  an  orchard,  he  may 
as  well  raise  fine  fruit  as  poor;  it  is  not  a 
whit  harder.  And  besides,  when  it  comes 
to  returns  there  may  be  all  the  difference 
between  the  two  that  there  is  between 
profit  and  loss. 

BEST  LOCATION.— In  Part  I  of  this  work, 
under  the  heading  "A  Glance  at  Our  Or- 
ange Growing  Country"  and  subsequent 
chapters,  I  have  discussed  the  question  of 
localities  suited  to  citrus  culture  quite 
fully,  with  reference  especially  to  this 
connection.  It  is  sufficient  to  reiterate 
here  that  all  authorities  agree  in  recom- 
mending the  high  mesa  lands  and  the  in- 
terior valleys,  where  conditions  of  soil, 
climate  and  water  supply  are  suitable. 

SOIL.— The  soil  should  be  loose,  well 
drained  and  warm;— n*  standing  water 
within  twenty  feet  of  the  surface— and  if 
there  be  a  hard-pan  at  all,  it  should  be 
deep.  The  orange  flourishes  best  in  a 
sandy  or  gravelly  loam.  Quite  a  variety 
of  soils  exists,  all  of  which  seem  to  fill 
the  requirements  of  the  oransje  in  nearly 
«qual  degree.  I  note  the  following: 

Disintegrated  granite  with  vegetable  de- 
posit. 

Gravely  alluvium. 

<Sandy  clay  (chocolate  colored). 

Olayish  sand  (brown). 

Sandy  clay  (reddish  brown ;  colored  by 
ferric  acid,  and  known  as  "red  land"). 

The  best  results  cannot  be  accomplished 
in  ground  that  bakes  and  packs  hard  un- 
der the  action  of  water  and  sun,  even 
though  such  ground  be  rich  in  all  the 
chemical  elements  required  in  tree  growth. 
Hence,  adobe  and  stiff  clay  soils  are  to  be 
avoided.  Standing  water  near  the  surface 
is  detrimental  because  it  keeps  the  ground 
cold.  A  shallow  hard-pan  is  a  disadvan- 


tage because  it  arrests  the  growth  of  the 
tap  root  and  stunts  the  tree. 

EXPOSURE. — On  rolling  or  elevated  lands 
a  southern,  southeastern  or  southwestern 
exposure  is  desirable.  The  orange  luxu- 
riates in  warmth,  and  the  more  the  tree 
and  the  ground  in  which  it  stands  are  ex- 
posed to  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun  the 
better. 

WATER. — Be  sure  to  get  a  good  water 
supply  and  have  it  convenient  for  appli- 
cation. But,  withal,  use  it  sparingly  at 
first.  Your  supply  will  stand  you  in 
good  stead  in  a  dry  season  and  after  your 
trees  come  into  bearing,  when  they  must 
have  irrigation  to  yield  paying  crops. 
This  subject  will  be  more  fully  discussed 
in  the  chapter  on  Irrigation  to  follow. 

WINDS.— Do  not  locate  where  your  or- 
chard will  be  exposed  to  severe  winds. 
<,iuite  a  large  proportion  of  fruit  is  lost 
every  year  by  being  whipped  against 
thorns  and  branches,  and  the  trees  them- 
selves are  sometimes  half  stripped  of 
leaves.  If  you  have  reason  to  apprehend 
an  occasional  wind  storm,  plant  a  double 
row  of  eucalyptus,  pepper  or  cypress  trees 
about  the  orchard  for  a  wind-break.  Cy- 
press or  pepper  are  preferable,  because 
they  do  not  exhaust  the  soil  to  such  a  dis- 
tance as  the  eucalyptus.  Some  foothill 
localities  excellently  suited  for  orange 
growing  in  every  other  respect,  are  un- 
available because  they  chance  to  align 
some  mountain  gorge  and  are  swept  by  the 
daily  currents  of  air  from  inland  to  ocean, 
and  vice  versa.  Beware  of  such  places. 

AVOIDING  FROSTS.— If  you  follow  the 
advice  given  in  these  articles  and  locate 
your  orchard  on  the  foothills  or  in  the 
high  interior  valleys,  you  will  be  in  little 
danger  from  frost.  Inasmuch  as  cold  air 
is  denser  and  heavier  than  warm,  the  cold 
weather  most  prevails  in  low  places.  It  is 
the  good  fortune  of  our  country  to  have 
its  cold  spells  of  short  duration,  and  con- 
sequently the  natural  basins  are  never 
quite  filled  up,  and  the  isothermal  line  of 
damaging  frosts  does  not  rise  over  the 
higher  altitudes. 

LOOKOUT  FOR  ROCKS.— If  you  select 
land  on  the  mesas,  especially  in  granite 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFOENIA. 


41 


formation,  beware  of  rocks.  These  mesas 
are  built  up  by  the  wash  from  the  mount- 
ains, and  many  places  that  look  compara- 
tively smooth  are  only  filled-up  beds  of 
former  ravines;  just  below  the  surface 
they  are  chock  full  of  bowlders.  If  you 
nee  only  a  few  of  these  fellows  cropping 
out  here  and  there,  regard  them  as  a  just 
of  suspicion  and  make  a  thorough 


investigation.  As  the  surface  is  usually 
covered  with  a  thick  growth  of  chapparal 
you  may  not  see  half  the  rocks  that  are 
really  above  ground.  A  little  neglect  in 
this  important  part  of  the  investigation 
may  cost  you  several  hundreds  of  dollars 
and  many  a  weary  day's  labor.  Take 
warning  from  a  man  who  has  been  through 
the  mill. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

CLEARING  AND  PREPARING  LAND. 


CLEARING.— Mesa  lands,  by  reason  of 
their  usually  thick  growth  of  chapparal 
and  occasional  timber,  are  more  difficult 
to  clear  than  lands  in  the  valley.  The 
usual  method  is  to  grub  out  by  the  root 
everything  in  the  form  of  tree  or  shrub. 
In  the  case  of  heavy  oak  and  sycamore 
timber  a  considerable  excavation  is  made, 
uncovering  the  hole  and  reaching  the 
*nam  tap  root  of  the  tree.  This  root  is  cut 
at  the  depth  of  two  to  four  feet  from  the 
surface  of  the  ground,  and  when  the  main 
laterals  are  also  severed  the  tree  topples 
over.  Thus  the  stump  is  wrenched  from 
the  earth,  and  disposed  of  much  more 
readily  and  cheaply  than  by  any  of  the 
old  methods  of  burning,  blowing  up  or 
twisting  out  with  horse-power. 

IMPLEMENTS.  —  The  implements  requi- 
site for  clearing  are  the  mattock,  or  grub- 
tooe,  axe,  shovel,  and  crow-bar.  When 
timber  is  to  be  cut  up  the  cross-cut  saw 
comes  into  play  also.  With  ordinary 
greasewood  and  sage  roots  the  mattock  is 
sufficient.  Sumacs,  alders  and  thorns  re- 
quire more  digging  and  chopping. 

THE  EASIEST  METHOD. — It  is  possible 
sometimes  when  the  chapparal  is  not  very 
heavy  and  that  all  sage,  or  sage  with  a 
sprinkling  of  greasewood,  to  substitute 
-horso-power  for  manual  labor,  with  a 
.great  saving  in  time  and  expense.  In 
such  cases  a  heavy  timber  or  a  railroad 
rail  ia  dragged  broadside  over  the  ground, 
-a  horse  being  hitched  at  each  end.  This 
-operation  may  be  repeated  in  an  opposite 
direction,  and  the  result  is  that  substan- 


tially all  of  the  brittle  stalks  are  brokeu 
off  close  to  the  ground.  A  horse-rake  is 
of  service  in  raking  the  brush  into  wind- 
rows, after  which  it  is  stacked  and  burned. 
The  roots,  which  still  remain  in  the 
ground,  are  thrown  out  by  a  heavy 
breaking-up  plow,  drawn  by  four  horses, 
and  it  is  necessary  to  send  men  over  the 
ground  to  collect  them  into  heaps  for 
burning  or  hauling  off.  This  wholesale 
method  of  clearing  chapparal  land  is 
rarely  feasible. 

THE  SLOW  AND  SURE  WAY.— The  ma- 
jority of  men  who  open  up  small  .foothills 
farms  find  there  is  nothing  for  it  but  to 
grub  out  the  brush  uby  main  force  and 
awkwardness." 

•  FUEL.— Although  the  clearing  involves 
a  deal  of  labor,  and  that  of  the  hardest 
kind,  there  is  a  compensation  in  the  fire- 
wood secured.  All  of  the  roots  named, 
with  the  single  exception  of  the  sage,  are 
serviceable  for  fuel.  From  thirty  acres  of 
chapparal  which  I  cleared  in  opening  up 
my  place  I  obtained  wood  enough  to  last 
my  family  four  years,  and  sold  upwards 
of  a  hundred  dollars'  worth  besides.  The 
idea  of  digging  firewood  out  of  the  ground 
is  novel  to  most  people,  but  when  fuel  is 
as  scarce  and  dear  as  in  California,  it  will 
not  do  to  despise  the  lowly  origin  and  un- 
comely appearance  of  our  greasewood 
and  sumac  roots.  When  dry,  they  make 
a  quick,  hot  fire,  and  are  especially  de- 
sirable for  cooking  purposes.  Oak  timber 
should  be  worked  into  stovewood  when 
green  (the  only  time,  in  fact,  that  it  can  be 


THE  ORANGE; 


split,)  and  if  marketed  the  returns  are 
sufficient  to  pay  quite  handsomely  above 
the  cost  of  clearing. 

CACTUS  LAND.— I  have  said  that  the 
mesas  are  more  difficult  to  clear  than  the 
valleys;  but  I  should  except  those  low- 
land localities  which  are  covered  with 
cactus.  This  pestiferous  growth,  known 
by  the  Mexican  name  'Tune,  is  a  succes- 
sion of  green,  pulpy  leaves,  one  growing 
atop  of  the  other,  and  all  covered  with 
little  bunches  of  thorns  like  cambric 
needles.  The  best  way  to  get  them  off  the 
ground  is  to  tie  a  long:  rope  around  a 
clump  and  drag  it  away  with  horses. 
Taken  in  detail,  it  is  chopped  in  pieces 
with  an  axe  and  handled  with  a  pitchfork. 
The  'tunes  are  too  green  to  burn,  and  must 
be  hauled  to  some  out-of-the-way  place. 
In  time  a  part  will  dry  up  or  decay,  and  a 
part  will  take  root  and  grow  again  if  not 
chopped  up  a  second  time.  Cactus  land 
has  the  reputation  of  being  strong,  and  it 
is  generally  mellow  and  well  suited  to 
trees  and  vines. 

TIME  TO  BEGIN  CLEARING.— Some  val- 
ley land  requires  no  clearing  whatever, 
but  is  ready  for  the  breaking  plow  at  any 
time  when  sufficiently  moist.  It  is  a  good 
plan  to  begin  clearing  land  in  the  latter 
part  of  summer  or  early  fall,  so  that  it 
may  be  ready  for  the  plow  as  soon  as  the 
first  winter  rains  soften  the  ground.  The 


time  allowed  for  clearing  may  be  short 
or  long  according  to  the  acreage  and  thtv 
force  employed,  but  of  one  thing  you  may 
be  certain:  it  is  likely  to  prov^e  a  harden 
and  longer  job  than  you  calculate.  There- 
fore, begin  early,  and  allow  ample  lee-way 
in  your  plans. 

CLEARING    AWAY     IvOCKS. — If    VOU    havtr- 

been  so  unfortunate  as  to  select  a  rocky 
piece  of  ground,  there  is  nothing  for  it  but 
to  dig  the  rocks  out  and  haul  them  away;: 
then  plow  and  dig  and  haul  again,  and  in 
the  course  of  a  year  or  two,  with  semi-an- 
nual gatherings,  your  place  may  be  rea- 
sonably clear.  With  rocky  land,  allow 
twice  or  thrice  the  time  required  for  clear- 
ing chapparal. 

PLOWING.— As  soon  as  possible  after  tht» 
first  penetrating  rains  have  fallen,  start 
the  plow,  and  give  your  land  a  thorough 
breaking  up.  The  plow  should  penetrate 
at  least  twelve  inches.  Then,  if  circum- 
stances allow,  let  the  piece  remain  » 
month  or  more  to  air-slack  and  pulverize, 
after  which,  cross-plow  and  harrow  thor- 
oughly. It  is  important  that  the  first 
plowing  be  done  early,  so  that  the  land 
may  be  in  condition  to  absorb  the  winter 
rains.  The  closer  the  last  plowing  ap- 
proximates the  planting,  the  better,  as  the 
soil  is  thus  left  in  a  mellow  condition  t««- 
receive  the  trees. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


SELECTING    TREES. 


COMMENCE  EARLY. — The  clearing  and 
breaking  disposed  of,  you  will  begin  to 
breathe  more  freely,  and  it  is  then  a  good 
time  to  think  about  trees.  The  sooner 
you  are  in  the  market  the  better  selection 
you  will  make.  No  harm  is  done  by 
looking  over  the  nurseries  thoroughly 
before  coming  to  a  conclusion. 

GET  Tin;  BEST.— I  would  remind  you 
of  the  advice  given  in  a  former  chapter, 
to  procure  only  the  best  trees  of  the  best 
varieties.  By  this  I  do  not  mean  always 
the  most  expensive  trees.  A  nurseryman 
may  have  six  or  seven  year  old  stock, 


which  he  recommends  highly  and  with 
apparent  reason ;  and  yet  it  might  be  t* 
doubtful  speculation  for  you  to  pay  the? 
fancy  price  he  demands.  Better  buy 
younger  trees  of  equal  thrift  and  earn  the 
extra  dollar  or  two  per  tree  by  growing 
thorn  yourself. 

THE  KIND  TO  SELECT.— A  tree  which 
is  two  years  old  in  its  budded  growth,  and 
four  years  old  in  its  stock,  and  which  is 
healthy  and  vigorous,  standing  from  five 
to  seven  feet  high,  may  be  accounted  first 
class.  If  you  can  obtain  such,  take  nu 
others.  The  health  of  a  tree  is  best  in- 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


dicated  by  the  dark  green  of  the  matured 
foliage.  If  it  have  a  yellowish  cast,  be- 
ware of  the  tree.  But  do  not  confound 
ihe  sickly  hue  of  the  older  leaves  with  the 
yellowish  green  of  the  new  growth.  The 
two  are  readily  distinguishable. 

A  FALSE  ECONOMY.— Do  not  let  meas- 
ures of  economy  induce  you  to  buy  at 
half  the  price  trees  that  are"  undersized  or 
stunted,  or  diseased  or  infested.  A  young 
orange  tree  which,  from  any  cause,  has 
been  checked  in  its  growth,  is  more  than 
half  ruined,  and  should  not  be  subjected 
to  the  additional  shock  of  removal. 
Though  cared  for  in  the  best  manner,  it  is 
likely  to  prove  a  losing  investment.  You 
should  consider  that  the  first  cost  of  trees 
is  a  mere  bagatelle  compared  with  the 
items  of  land,  time,  and  labor  devoted  to 
them  to  bring  them  to  the  fruiting  age, 
and  that  this  greater  expense  must  be  in- 
curred for  poor  trees  as  well  as  for  good; 
nay,  more,  the  cost  of  raising  may  be 
greater  for  the  poor,  and  you  get  only 
scrubs  at  last. 

THE  WAY  TO  ECONOMIZE.— If  you  de- 
sire to  economize  in  your  purchases,  do  so 
by  selecting  younger  trees,  but  never  by 
dispensing  with  thrift.  Let  the  tree  be  as 
healthy  and  sturdy  and  large  as  it  ought 
in  reason  to  be  at  the  age  you  buy  it. 
Yearling  buds  on  three-year-old  stocks 
are  often  set.  Some  prefer  them  to  the 
older  growth. 

A  GOOD  WAY  TO  JUDGE.— As  good   an 


index  as  one  can  have  in  judging  of  nur- 
sery stock  is  to  note  the  general  character 
of  the  nurseryman's  place.  If  it  have  a 
neat,  well-kept  and  thrifty  appearance, 
you  may  almost  jump  at  the  conclusion 
that  his  young  trees  are  in  the  same  favor- 
able condition.  If,  on  the  contrary,  the 
place  is  out  at  the  elbows,  the  chances  are 
against  the  trees.  Be  on  the  lookout  for 
stunted  or  diseased  or  scaly  stocks,  or  any 
of  the  other  ills  that  come  from  neglect. 
In  cases  where  the  cultivation  of  a  nur- 
sery has  been  slighted,  though  the  tree* 
may  not  show  it  except  in  their  lack  or. 
vigor,  they  are  apt  to  die  after  transplant- 
ing. 

VARIETIES.— Concerning  the  best  varie- 
ties of  budded  trees,  the  reader  is  referred 
to  the  chapter  on  that  subject.  I  would 
advise  the  selection  of  one  or  two  varieties 
and  the  planting  of  these  almost  wholly. 
Uniformity  of  fruit  is  a  desideratum  when 
it  comes  to  marketing.  If  you  wish  many 
varieties,  plant  only  one  or  two  trees  of 
each,  and  leave  the  main  body  of  the 
orchard  in  one  kind. 

MARK  THE  TREES.— Having  found  the 
trees  you  want,  mark  them  with  tags  or 
strings  of  some  peculiar  kind  that  the 
nurseryman  will  recognize  as  yours. 
Then  make  a  small  payment  to  secure 
them  beyond  a  peradventure,  and  with 
the  receipt  in  your  pocket  go  home  satis- 
fied that  you  have  done  a  good  day'* 
work. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

LAYING  OFF  THE  ORCHARD. 


IMPORTANCE:  OF  run  WORK.— The  oper- 
ation preliminary  to  planting  is  laying  off 
and  staking  the  groilnd.  Upon  the  ac- 
curacy with  which  this  is  done  depends 
the  symmetry  of  your  orchard  as  long  as 
it  exists.  The  neglect  or  carelessness  of  a 
few  hours  at  this  juncture  may  result  in 
an  "eye-sore"  for  half  a  lifetime.  There- 
fore, one  can  hardly  be  too  painstaking. 

RSTABLISHED  METHODS.— Every  man  of 
common  sense  knows,  or  thinks  he  knows, 
how  to  measure  off  and  mark  a  piece  of 


ground  so  that  his  trees  will  come  in  reg- 
ular rows  and  the  rows  regularly  dis- 
posed. If  he  goes  at  .it  by  "  the  rule  of 
thumb,"  he  may  or  may  not  accomplish 
his  purpose,  but,  in  either  event,  he  is 
likely  to  incur  needless  work  and  bother. 
It  is  better  for-him  to  inform  himself  in 
advance  of  the  various  labor-saving  de- 
vices which  have  resulted  from  the  ex- 
perience of  others;  then  adopt  some 
method  which  seems  to  him  most  feasible,, 
and  consistently  pursue  it.. 


THE  GRANGE; 


IMPLEMENTS  REQUIRED.— The  outfit  for 
laying  off  aud  staking  land  consists  of  a 
•chain,  an  axe,  four  or  five  flags  (poles  with 
bits  of  cloth  fastened  at  the  top)  and  a 
plentiful  supply  of  stakes.  Stakes  a  foot 
in  length  will  do,  but  the  work  is  nicer 
with  laths  three  or  four  feet  long,  since 
one  can  sight  along  a  row  of  them  without 
getting  down  upon  the  ground  too  close 
for  comfort.  The  flags  are  serviceable  for 
designating  corners  and  points  to  be  seen 
•from  a  long  distance. 

THE  PLANTING  CHAIN.— The  best  and 
Cheapest  chain  that  I  have  found  is  one 
made  of  annealed  wires  twisted  about  a 
cord  and  in  common  use  as  "clothes  line 
wire."  To  make  it  serviceable  for  plant- 
ing, fasten  some  large  iron  rings  at  the 
ends  for  hand-holds  and  space  the  wire  off 
in  the  length  decided  upon  for  distances 
between  trees  by  running  a  fine  wire  be- 
tween the  strands  and  fastening  a  piece  of 
cloth  or  a  tag  thereto.  The  length  of  the 
chain  may  depend  somewhat  upon  the 
length  of  the  rows  to  be  planted,  though 
two  hundred  feet  is  about  a  maximum 
limit  for  convenient  handling.  In  spacing 
the  wire  off,  it  is  a  good  plan  to  make  the 
end  spaces  conform  to  the  distance  adopted 
for  the  margin  of  the  orchard,  then  all  in- 
termediate spaces  represent  distances  be- 
tween trees.  Thus,  if  the  margin  be 
twelve  feet  and  the  distances  between 
trees  twenty,  the  chain  will  be  thus 
marked: 

B c D E 


o  o  o  o 

FIG.  1— PLANTING  CHAIN. 

A  to  B,  12  feet. 

B  to  C,  20  feet. 

C'to  D,  20  feet. 

D  to  E,  20  feet. 

X  to  Y,  12  feet. 

A  chain  of  heavier  wire  than  that  I  have 
described  is  sometimes  made  in  links 
joined  with  small  rings,  but  this  is  ob- 
jectionable on  account  of  kinking.  Hope 
should  never  be  employed,  as  the  shrink- 
ing and  stretching  while  in  use  preclude 
anything  like  accuracy. 

A  HELPER.— The  work  of  measuring 
and  staking  requires  two  people;  a  smart 
boy  will  do  for  a  helper. 


BOUNDARY  LINKS.— The  first  task  to 
which  one  addresses  himself  is  establish- 
ing the  boundary  lines  of  the  orchard.  If 
the  land  has  been  regularly  surveyed  and 
staked  and  the  orchard  is  located  in  one 
corner  or  along  one  side  of  the  lot,  the 
measuring  of  the  required  distances  each 
way  to  fix  the  orchard  lines  is  an  easy 
matter.  But  if* the  orchard  happens  to  be 
in  the  middle  of  the  farm,  and  there  are 
no  right  angles  already  designated,  the 
planter  must  first  apply  himself  to 

ESTABLISHING  A  KECTANGLE  —  which 
may  be  done  as  follows:  Fix  upon  some 
line  that  runs  parallel  to  the  north-and- 
south  or  the  east-and-west  line  of  your 
place,  or  whatever  road,  field,  fence, 
building  or  other  object  it  is  desired  to 
have  the  orchard  align.  This  we  will  call 
the  base  line. 


A     .  E  B  c 

FIG.  2— ESTABLISHING  A  RECTANGLE. 

Extend  the  base  line  A  B  any  distance, 
say  one  hundred  feet,  to  C.  Mark  the 
points  E  and  C  equal  distances  from  B, 
say  one  hundred  feet  each.  Then  take  a 
rope  or  chain  longer  than  E  B  C  (in  this 
case  three  hundred  feet)  with  a  knot  or 
tag  exactly  in  the  middle.  Fasten  one 
end  of  the  rope  at  E  and  the  other  end  at 
C;  draw  the  rope  out  as  shown  in  E  D  C. 
The  knot  or  loop  being  in  the  middle  will 
fall  at  D,  giving  a  perpendicular  to  the 
base  line  A  E  B  C.  By  standing  at  B  and 
sighting  across  B  D,  the  point  F  may  be 
established  at  any  required  distance,  giv- 
ing a  corner  of  the  orchard  ground,  and 
then,  by  measurement,  the  point  G  may 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


also  be  lixed.  You  then  have  the  bound- 
ary of  the  orchard  in  the  form  of  the  rect- 
angle A  B  F  G. 

DISTANCES  APART.— Orange  trees'  are 
planted  from  ten  to  thirty  feet  apart  ac- 
cording to  their  habits  of  growth.  Dwarf H 
like  the  Mandarin  may  be  advantageously 
placed  ten  feet  apart;  semi-dwarfs,  such 


as  the  Washington  Navei,  Mediterranean 
Sweet,  Maltese  Blood  and  St.  Michael>. 
fifteen  to  twenty  feet;  standard  trees — 
seedlings  and  native  buds — twenty  to  thir- 
ty feet.  The  distances  most  in  vogue  are 

Dwarfs — ten  feet, 

Semi-dwarfs— eighteen  feet, 

Standards — twenty-four  feet. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

ARRANGING  AN  ORCHARD-THE  SQUARE  SYSTEM. 


THRKK  SYSTEMS.— There  are  three  pop- 
alar  systems  for  the  arrangement  of  trees 
in  an  orchard : 

1st:  The  square  system. 

2d:  The  quincunx  system. 

.'Jd:  The  septuple  system. 

It  is  with  the  first  named  that  this  chap- 
ter deals. 

THE  SQUARE  SYSTEM.— This  is  the  ar- 
rangement of  trees  in  a  quadrangular 
form;  i.  e.,  so  that  four  trees  in  two  prox- 
imate rows  form  a  figure  of  a  quadrangle, 
thus: 


FIG.  3. 

The  general  online  of  the  orchard  also 
becomes  a  quadrangle  if  the  rows  are  of 
equal  length  and  number  throughout. 
The  system  thus  carried  out  is  illustrated 
in  Fig  4. 


How  TO  STAKE  BY  THIS  SYSTEM.— The 
boundary  lines  of  the  orchard  ground  be- 
ing already  established,  determine  how 
much  margin  you  will  leave  between  the- 
outside  rows  of  trees  and  the  boundary 
lines.  It  is  generally  inexpedient  to  plant, 
trees  directly  upon  the  outer  lines,  as  that 
would  bring  the  orchard  flush  with  a  road 
or  fence  or  hedge,  or  with  some  neigh- 
bor's property.  The  margin  usually  aK 
lowed  is  from  ten  to  twenty  feet,  accord- 
ing to  the  character  of  the  trees  and  the 
confidence  one  has  in  the  public. 

A_ c 


d  * 


FIG.  4— THE  SQUARE  SYSTEM. 


FIG.  5 — CHECK-ROWS. 

A  B  D  C,  boundary  lines, 
afe,  erf,  check-rows. 

Let  us  take,  for  illustration,  a  margin  of 
twelve  feet.  Stake  the  points  «,  ft,  c  and  <? 
at  the  corners  twelve  feet  inside  the  bound- 
ary lines.  Place  two  lines  of  stakes,  a  6y 
*j  d.  along  opposite  si<Jes,  the  distance  be- 


THE  ORANGE; 


tween  stakes  being  that  determined  upon 
for  the  distance  between  rows.  These 
lines,  a  6,  cd,  are  known  as  check-rows. 
Stretch  the  chain  across  the  ground  from 
a  to  (I  and  stake  the  first  row. 

A D 


FIG.  G—  THE  FIRST  ROW  OF  TREES. 

This  work  of  staking  is  most  expedi- 
tiously  done  by  drawing  the  chain  tense 
and  fastening  it  to  the  ground  with  an 
iron  pin  at  each  end.  Then  yourself  and 
assistant,  each  with  an  armful  of  stakes, 
advance  from  your  opposite  stations,  plac- 
ing a  stake  at  each  tag  until  you  meet  in 
the  middle  of  the  ground.  Then  retrace 
your  steps,  stretch  the  chain  for  the  next 
row  and  repeat  the  operation.  It  is  best 
to  make  the  end  tag  of  the  chain  tally  with 
the  pins  in  one  check -row  all  the  way 
through.  For  example,  if  you  adopt  a  ft, 
Fig.  5,  as  the  tally-row,  do  not  be  con- 
cerned if  the  last  tag  at  the  other  end  of 
the  chain  does  not  always  touch  the  pin 
in  the  row  c  d.  Make  your  orchard 
straight  on  one  side,  and  let  the  other  side 
take  care  of  itself.  Should  the  tag  and 
pin  on  the  off  side  fail  to  agree  exactly, 
pull  out  the  pin  and  make  it  conform  to 
the  tag. 

REVIEWING  THE  WORK.  —  After  the 
staking  is  completed  it  is  a  good  plan  to 
review  the  work  by  sighting  along  each 
row,  both  up  and  down  and  across  the 
orchard.  Any  inaccuracies  may  thus  be 
detected  in  time  for  correction.  When  it 
comes  to  this  operation  of  sighting,  you 
will  find  it  an  advantage  if  the  stakes 
have  been  set  in  the  ground  at  a  perpen- 
dicular. Don't  question  this  statement 
until  you  cast  your  eye  along  a  line  of 


irregularly  leaning  stakes  and  see  how 
confusing  it  is. 

NUMBER  OF  TREES  TO  THE  ACRE. —  To 
compute  the  number  of  trees  that  can  be 
planted  on  an  acre  by  the  square  system : 

RULE. — 1st,  Multiply  the  distance  apart 
in  the  row  by  the  distance  between  row*. 
This,  will  give  the  number  of  square  feet 
occupied  by  each  tree. 

2d,  Divide  43,560,  the  number  of  square 
feet  in  an  acre,  by  the  number  of  square 
feet  occupied  by  each  tree,  and  the  quotient 
will  be  the  number  of  trees  to  the  acre. 

EXAMPLE. — How  many  trees  on  an  acre 
if  planted  22  by  24  feet  apart? 

22  X  24  =  528. 

43,500  7-  528  =  82.5.  Ans.,  say  82  tree* 
to  the  acre. 

For  convenience  of  reference  the  fol- 
lowing table  is  given: 

NUMBER  OF  TREES  TO  THE  ACRE. 


Distance  apart. 


X  10. 
X  12. 
x  14. 


Number. 

430 

:;<>:; 

311 


x  IB !!!!"""  """!!!1\V"".T.'........  272 

x  12 302 

x  14 259 


x  16.. 

x  18.. 

x  14.. 

x  16.. 

x  18.. 

x  20.. 

x  16.. 

x  18.. 

x  20.. 

x  -'2.. 

x  20!! 

x  22.. 

x  24.. 

x  20.. 

x  22.. 

x  24.. 

x  21.. 

x  22.. 

x  24.. 

x  24.. 

x  25.. 

x  26.. 

x  28.. 

x  30.. 


227 
202 
222 
199 
173 
156 
170 
151 
130 
124 


110 
101 
109 
99 
91 
99 
90 
82 
76 
70 
64 
56 


NOTE. — In  these  computations  the  frac- 
tion is  dropped  when  amounting  to  one-' 
half  or  less;  when  exceeding  one-half 
one  is  taken. 


ITS  CULTUEE  IN  CALIFOKNIA. 
CHAPTER  X. 

THE  QUINCUNX  SYSTEM. 


; 
'          '^ 


NX  DEFINED.— -Webster  defines 
'the  word  quincunx  as  follows  :  "An  ar- 
rangement or  disposition  of  things  by 
'Jives  in  a  square,  one  being  placed  in  the 
middle  of  the  square  ;  especially  an  ar- 
rangement as  of  trees,  in  squares,  consist- 
ing of  five  trees,  one  at  each  corner,  and  a 
fifth  in  the  middle,  this  order  being  re- 
peated indefinitely  so  as  to  form  a  regular 
i^roup,  with  rows,  or  ranks,  running  in 
various  directions." 

ILLUSTRATION. — The  quincunx  figure  is 
thus  illustrated  : 


I ••!«!.  7— QUINCUNX. 

Extended  in  a  regular  group  it  becomes 
the  following: 


FIG.   8— QUINCUNX   GROUP. 

How  QUINCUNX  PLANTING  is  AVAIL- 
ABLE.—This  system  of  planting  is  resort- 
ed to  mainly  under  the  following  condi- 
tions: 

1st.  By  those  who  have  orchards  al- 
ready planted  on  the  square  system,  and 
who  wish  to  increase  the  number  of  trees 
without  enlarging  the  area. 

2d.  By  those  who  wish  to  plant  both 
oitrus  and  deciduous  trees  in  the  same 
orchard  with  a  view,  generally,  of  cutting 
away  the  deciduous  trees  when  the  citrus 
':ome  into  bearing.  With  Quincunx  plant- 
ing they  can  at  pleasure  dispense  with 
the  middle  tree  in  each  group  of  five,  and 
leavo  the  remaining  orchard  in  regular 


;<1.  Quincunx  is  also  employed  in  the 
planting  of  seedling  and  budded  orange 
trees  in  the  same  orchard,  the  four  corners 
of  the  square  being  occupied  by  standard 
trees  and  the  middle  points  by  budded 
varieties,  which  make  a  lesser  growth. 

How  TO  STAKE  ON  THE  QUINCUNX  SYS- 
TEM.—Stake  the  two  check  rows  the  same 
as  for  square  planting  except  that,  you 
double  the  number  of  stakes.  For  ex- 
ample, if  the  trees  in  the  square  are  to  be 
twenty-four  feet  apart,  with  an  extra  quin- 
cunx tree  in  the  middle,  place  the  stakes 
in  the  check  rows  twelve  feet  apart. 

ARRANGING  THE  PLANTING  CHAIN.— 
To  the  planting  chain  attach  an  extra  tag, 
as  X,  Fig.  9,  one-half  the  established  dis- 
tance from  the  tag  A. 
~       x      A  B  c  D 

U        o         o  o  o " 6 

FIG.  9 — THE  PLANTING  CHAIN- ARRANGED. 

EXPLANATION.— Assuming  that  the  es- 
tablished distance  between  trees  is  twenty- 
four  feet,  then  from  X  to  A  is  12  feet ;  A 
to  B  24  feet,  etc. 

THE  PROCESS  OF  STAKING.— Stretch  the 
chain  for  the  first  row,  allowing  the  tag  A 
(Fig.  9)  to  fall  upon  the  pin  a,  Fig.  10. 
a  b 


FIG.  10— THE  CHECK  ROWS— QUINCUNX. 

For  the  second  row,  let  the  tag  X  fall 
upon  the  pin  n.  Proceed  with  the  staking 
as  usual,  placing  a  pin  at  each  tag  in  the 
chain.  The  result  of  changing  the  check 
tags  A  and  X  is  to  bring  the  trees  alternate- 
ly opposite  each  other,  thus  : 


KI(T.  11— ALTERNATELY   OPPOSITE. 


48 


THE  ORANGE, 


It  is  necessary  to  tally  with  the  tag  A  in 
each  odd  row,  and  with  the  tag  X  in  each 
even  row,  thus  A,  X,  A,  X  ;  shifting  the 
chain  back  and  forth  like  a  shuttlecock. 
This  will  bring  the  orchard  in  regular 
quincunx  order,  as  shown  in  Fig.  8. 

PULL  UP  UNNECESSARY  STAKES.—  The 
staker  should  be  careful  to  pull  up  all  the 
intermediate  stakes  in  the  check  rows,  as 
n,  o,  p,  q,  r,  s,  etc.,  Fig.  10,  since  they  are 
merely  check  stakes  and  do  not  denote 
places  for  trees  like  the  stakes  a,  b,  c,  etc. 
The  stakes  marked  o,  Fig.  12,  are  the  ones 
to  come  out  ;  their  work  is  done  as  soon 
as  the  chain  is  stretched. 


FIG.  12—0,  O,  O,  O,  SHOWING  STAKES  TO   BK 
PULLED. 

DISTANCE  APART.—  In  planting  quin- 
cunx, it  is  advisable  to  have  the  trees  in 
regular  squares  not  less  than  twenty  -four 
feet  apart  ;  and  they  may  sometimes  be 
placed  thirty  feet  apart  with  advantage. 
At  twenty-four  feet  apart  the  distance 
from  the  trees  on  the  square  to  the  middle 
tree  is  about  seventeen  feet.  On  a  scale  of 
thirty  feet,  this  intermediate  distance  be- 
comes about  twenty  feet. 


NUMBER  OF  TRRES  TO  THE  ACRE.— To 
ascertain  the  number  of  trees  to  the  acre 
by  the  Quincunx  system,  observe  the  fol- 
lowing: 

RULE. — 1st.  Compute  the  number  of  tree* 
in  the  regular  squares,  as  shown  in  Chaptn 
X. 

•-M.  Multiply  this  result  byvtwo. 

3d.  From  the  product  subtract  the  num- 
ber of  intermediate  (Quincunx)  trees  on  two 
nides  of  the  orchard,  plus  1. 

EXAMPLE.— How  many  trees  on  an  acre 
of  ground  planted  Quincunx,  the  trees  on 
regular  squares  being  twenty-four  feet 
apart? 

The  table,  Chapter  X,  shows  that  at 
twenty-four  feet  apart,  Square  system, 
there  are  76  trees  to  the  acre. 

76  X  2  =  152. 

152  —  *(  8  -f  8  -f- 1 )  =  135.    Ans. ,  135  trees. 

ANOTHER  RULE. — An  approximate  rule 
for  finding  the  number  of  trees  to  an  acre, 
quincunx,  is  to  ascertain  the  number  of 
trees  on  the  regular  squares,  and  add  7* 
per  cent,  thereto. 

*NOTR. — It  is  assumed  that  the  acre  of  ground 
taken  for  illustration  is  in  a  square  form,  and  that 
there  are  eight  intermediate  or  Quincunx  tree* 
along  each  side.  The  (8  -|-  8  -|-  1)  represents  the 
inside  trees  along  two  sides,  plus  one,  as  given  in, 
tie  rule. 


CHAPTER  XI; 

THE  SEPTUPLE  SYSTEM. 


A  MISNOMER  CORRECTED.— The  system 
of  planting  which  I  designate  Septuple 
has  hitherto  been  known  as  Quincunx, 
the  term  being  applied  almost  indiscrimi- 
nately to  this  system  and  the  one  de- 
scribed in  the  preceding  chapter.  Great 
confusion  has  resulted  from  this  misappli- 
cation and  conflict  of  terms,  some  writers 
even  going  to  the  length  of  calling  the 
Septuple  "  the  true  Quincunx,"  and  re- 
pudiating the  other,  or  genuine  Quincunx 
system,  altogether.  This  is  error  carried 
to  the  point  of  fanaticism,  and  offers  no 
reasonable  way  out  of  the  dilemma. 
Clearly  there  are  two  distinct  systems  of 


planting  here  confounded,  and  they 
ought  to  be  designated  by  different  names. 
It  is  manifest  by  the  definition  quoted  in 
the  preceding  chapter  that  there  is  an  old- 
established  and  well-defined  system  of 
planting  known  as  Quincunx ;  that  it  is  by 
lives — four  trees  on  a  square  and  one  in 
the  middle— as  shown  in  the  illustration. 
To  this  system,  then,  the  title  properly  bo- 
longs.  If  some  other  system  is  devised 
which  comprehends  the  planting  of  tree* 
in  an  essentially  different  group — say  by 
sevens  instead  of  fives — it  is  clearly  a  mis- 
nomer to  call  that  system  Quincunx  also. 
At  the  risk,  then,  of  stirring  up  a  hornet's 


ITS  CULTUBE  IN  CALIFOBNIA. 


49 


nest  among  horticultural  writers,  I  ven- 
ture to  correct  the  error  that  has  been 
tolerated  so  long. 

WHY  SEPTUPLE.— This  system  I  call  the 
Septuple  because  it  is  made  up  of  regular 
groups  of  seven.  The  geometrical  figure 
formed  by  this  group  is  that  of  a  hexagon, 
with  a  tree  at  each  angle  and  a  tree  in  the 
middle,  thus: 


FIG.  13— THE  SEPTUPLE  GROUP. 

NOTE— It  is  possible  to  resolve  the  trees  planted 
by  this  system  into  groups  of  five,  but  they  do  not 
form  a  regular  equilateral  figure.  Thus,  in  Fig. 
0,  it  is  seen  at  a  glance  that  the  figure  formed  is 
not  a  square,  hence  cannot  come  within  Webster's 
definition  of  quincunx. 


FIG.  0 — SHOWING  MISAPPLICATION  OF  TERM  QUINCE  NX 

The  complete  orchard  is  resolvable  into 
a  succession  of  these  groups,  matched  to- 
gether like  the  blocks  in  a  hexagon  quilt. 


FIG.  14 — SEPTUPLE  GROUPS. 

No  PRACTICAL  BEARING.— Of  course, 
the  fact  that  trees  planted  on  this  system, 
or  on  any  other,  are  resolvable  into  groups 
cuts  no  figure  in  the  practical  work  of 
planting  or  cultivating  the  orchard.  Nei- 
ther will  one  readily  discover  this  geo- 
metrical peculiarity  on  inspecting  the 
trees  themselves.  On  the  contrary,  be- 
tween the  Quincunx  and  Septuple  planted 
orchards,  scarcely  any  difference  is  ob- 
servable on  casual  inspection. 

THE  DIFFERENCE.— But  there  is  a  dif- 
ference, and  an  essential  one  in  the  econo- 
my of  planting.  Taking  the  figure  of  the 
quincunx,  for  example,  we  see  that  the 


trees  stand   at  irregular  distances  apart. 
A        B 


C        D 

FIG.  15— IRREGULAR    DISTANCES   APART. 

Thus,  the  established  square  distance 
being  twenty-four  feet,  A  and  B  are 
twenty-four  feet  apart;  likewise  B  and  D 
D  and  C,  and  C  and  A.  But  the  distance 
from  each  one  of  these  trees  to  e  is  seven- 
teen feet  (approximately).  Hence  it  hap- 
pens that,  while  the  rows  up  and  down 
the  orchard  and  transversely  may  be  too 
open  (24  feet),  the  diagonal  rows  (from  A 
to  D  and  B  to  C)  may  be  too  close  (17  feet). 

With  the  septuple  system,  this  difficulty 
is  entirely  obviated,  as  each  tree  is  equi- 
distant from  all  proximate  trees. 
A        B 


G        C 


E 


FIG.  16— TREES  EQUIDISTANT. 

Thus,  from  A  to  B  and  B  to  C  and  thence 
around  the  hexagon,  the  spaces  are  the 
same,  and  these  spaces  also  equal  the  lines 
A  G,  B  G,  C  G,  D  G,  etc. 

THE  ADVANTAGE.— Herein  lies  the  great 
advantage  of  Septuple  planting,  making 
it,  in  my  opinion,  the  finest  system  ever 
devised.  Upon  a  given  space,  allowing 
the  same  distances  between  trees,  fifteen 
per  cent  more  trees  may  be  planted  Septu- 
ple than  by  the  Square  system.  This  seems 
at  first  glance  impossible,  but  it  is  never- 
theless a  fact.  A  gain  of  fifteen  per  cent 
in  the  productive  capacity  of  land  is  not 
to  be  ignored.  Many  merchants  handle 
goods  on  a  margin  of  fifteen  per  cent,  and 
many  farmers  may  find  that  fifteen  per 
cent  turns  the  scale  in  their  profit  and 
loss  account.  There  are  other  practical 
advantages  in  the  Septuple  system.  As  the 
trees  come  in  equally  spaced  rows,  in  four 
different  ways,  they  may  be  cultivated 
with  advantage  in  as  many  directions, 
making  each  cultivation  criss-cross  sever- 
al others.  In  irrigating,  water  may  some- 
times be  run  down  the  diagonal  rows  with 
great  advantage.  Especially  is  this  true 
where  the  orchard  is  located  on  sloping 
land  and  the  fall  is  too  great  to  allow  the 
running  of  water  down  the  straight  rows. 


50 


THE  OKANGE, 


NOT  DIFFICULT.— The  novice  should  not 
allow  himself  to  be  dazed  by  the  multi- 
plicity of  geometrical  figures  which  I  have 
given  in  explaining  the  nomenclature  of 
the  system.  It  does  not  require  a  surveyor 
to  stake  off  the  orchard  ground  in  Septu- 
ple form.  On  the  ^contrary,  when  you 
once  grasp  the  theory  you  will  find  it  as 
easy  as  any  other  system. 

SEPTUPLE  ILLUSTRATED.— To  give  an  oc- 
cular  demonstration  of  an  orchard  planted 
by  this  system,  I  present  a  diagram  after 
the  manner  of  those  in  preceding  chap- 
ters: 


Giyen  an  equilateral  triangle,  A  B  C,  to 
find  its  altitude. 

C 


FIG.  17— SEPTUPLE  ORCHARD  ILLUSTRATED. 

METHOD  OF  STAKING.— The  staking  is 
done  in  substantially  the  same  way  as  de- 
scribed in  the  Quincunx  planting.  Run 
two  check- rows  of  stakes  along  opposite 
sides  of  the  orchard,  and,  in  using  the 
chain,  alternate  the  check-tags  as  previ- 
ously described.  By  shifting  the  chain 
back  and  forth  the  trees  are  brought  alter- 
nately opposite  (Fig.  11). 

KEY  TO  THE  SEPTUPLE  SYSTEM.— It  is 
in  setting  the  stakes  in  the  check -rows  that 
the  difference  between  this  and  all  other 
systems  occurs.  This  must  be  explained 
at  length.  In  Fig.  18  it  is  plainly  observ- 
able that  the  trees  in  opposite  rows  ar- 
range themselves  in  triangles. 


*F1G.  18— TRIANGULAR    ARRANGEMENT. 

It  has  been  explained  that  the  trees  are 
equal  distances  apart  each  way,  and  hence 
A  B  C  is  an  equilateral  triangle.  Now,  we 
have  the  simple  geometrical  problem: — 


FIG.    19— AN   EQUILATERAL    TRIANGLE    TO 
FIND  ITS  ALTITUDE. 

Drop  a  perpendicular  from  the  apex  C 
upon  the  base  A  B.  Then  A  D  C  is  a 
rightangle  triangle.  The  dimension  of 
the  side  A  C  is  known.  The  dimension 
of  A  D  is  one-half  of  A  B.  We  wish  to 
ascertain  the  dimension  C  D.  The  formu- 
la is: 


V  (A  C2— A  D2)=CD 

If  the  trees  are  planted  twenty  feet 
apart,  we  have  the  problem  in  figures 
thus: 


V    (202  _  1Q2)  =3. 

SOLUTION. 

202—400. 

102=100. 

400—100  =  300. 

v/~300=17^  (nearly),  or  17  feet  4  inches. 

ANSWER.— If  A  C  is  twenty  feet  and  A  D 
ten  feet,  then  the  distance  from  C  to  D  is 
seventeen  feet  and  four  inches. 

The  orchard  being  staked  on  the  Septu- 
ple system,  with  the  trees  twenty  feet 
apart,  the  stakes  in  the  check-rows  should 
be  seventeen  feet  and  four  inches  apart. 

Having  staked  the  check-rows  the  re- 
quired distance,  proceed  to  stretch  the 
chain  and  set  the  stakes  exactly  as  de- 
scribed in  Quincunx  planting.  Remem- 
ber the  injunction  there  given  to  pull  out 
alternate  stakes  in  the  check-rows  when 
you  are  through  with  them.  (See  Fig.  12.) 

DISTANCE  FOR  CHECK-ROWS. — For  con- 
venience of  reference,  I  append  a  table, 
showing  the  distances  at  which  the  check- 
stakes  should  be  set  for  various  spaces: 

10  feet  apart _ 8  feet  8  inches. 

12 
14 
16 
18 
20 
21 
22 
24 


10 

42-5 

12 

% 

13 

10>£ 

15 

7 

17 

4 

18 

21A 

19 

% 

..  20 

VA 

ITS  CULTUKE  IN  CALIFOENIA. 


51 


NUMBER  OF  TREES  TO  THE  ACRE.— To 
ascertain  the  number  of  trees  to  the  acre, 
Septuple  planting. 

RULE. — Calculate  the  number  set  the 
same  distance  apart  on  the  Square  system, 
and  add  fifteen  per  cent. 

NUMBER  OF  TREES  TO  THE  ACRE. 

Square.    Septuple. 

10  feet  apart 435 500 

12         "         302 347 

14         "         222 255 


16  feet  apart 170 195 

18         "          134 154 

20  "          109 125 

21  "         99 114 

22  "         90 103 

24         "         75 86 

*NOTE— This  system,  with  equal  propriety,  might 
be  termed  the  Triangular  system .  I  have  preferred , 
however,  to  denominate  it  the  Septuple,  following 
the  analogy  of  the  Quincunx — a  group  about  a  cen- 
tral tree. 


CHAPTER  XII, 

TAKING  TREES  FROM  NURSERY. 


TIME.— In  determining  the  time  for 
transplanting  orange  trees  we  should  con- 
sider, first,  the  condition  of  the  trees: 
second,  the  season. 

The  orange  tree  has  several  periods  of 
growth  during  the  year.  It  would  be  im- 
possible to  define  exactly  these  growing 
seasons,  or  even  to  state  their  number,  so 
much  do  they  vary  in  different  trees  and 
under  different  conditions  of  health  and 
vigor,  irrigation,  cultivation,  etc.;  but 
there  are  certain  times  when  nearly  all 
orange  trees  are  dormant,  and  other  times 
when  nearly  all  are  growing. 

THE  DORMANT  STAGE.—  In  transplant- 
ing orange  trees  it  is  best  to  take  them  in 
their  dormant  stage,  as  they  do  not  then 
feel  the  shock  of  removal  as  much  as 
when  they  are  active.  Approaching  a 
general  rule  as  nearly  as  possible  I  may 
give  the  dormant  periods  as  follows: 

Middle  of  March  to  the  middle  of  April. 

The  month  of  June. 

The  month  of  September. 

Middle  of  November  to  the  middle  of 
December. 

THE  VARIOUS  SEASONS.— Many  people 
transplant  trees  in  March-April  season 
with  excellent  results.  The  danger  to  be 
provided  against  at  that  time  is  in  the  cold 
weather  which  is  likely  to  prevail.  If  the 
roots  suffer  a  chill  the  tree  is  irretrievably 
stunted  if  not  killed  outright.  June  is 
the  most  popular  time  for  planting,  and, 
all  things  considered,  the  best,  as  neither 
excessive  cool  nor  hot  weather  is  en- 
countered, and  the  season  of  strongest 


growth  following,  exercises  a  powerful  in 
fiuence  in  starting  the  tree  upon  its  new 
life.  I  have  known  trees  planted  in  Sep- 
tember to  thrive  finely,  though  few  peo- 
ple plant  at  that  time.  November  and  De- 
cember planting  is  not  in  vogue  at  all. 

TRIMMING  TREES  BEFORE  TRANSPLANT- 
ING.— It  is  a  good  plan  to  prune  nursery 
stock  quite  heavily  a  week  or  ten  days 
before  transplanting.  This  gives  the  trees 
a  chance  to  recover  from  one  shock  before 
encountering  the  second.  The  shock  of 
pruning  has  a  tendency  also  to  throw  the 
tree  into  a  more  complete  dormant  condi- 
tion, when  it  suffers  least  from  the  lacera- 
tion of  the  roots. 

It  is  a  universal  rule  in  horticulture  that 
in  transplanting  a  tree,  the  top  should  be 
cut  away  in  proportion  to  the  loss  of  roots. 
With  orange  trees  this  is  almost  a  sine  qua 
non.  If  the  trees  are  not  pruned  before 
removal  they  should  be  pruned  directly 
afterwards,  and  the  knife  should  be  used 
vigorously.  I  know  an  experienced  grow- 
er who  follows  the  rule  of  depriving  his 
lemon  trees  of  every  leaf  at  the  time  of 
transplanting.  He  claims  that  they  start 
more  readily  for  this  heroic  treatment, 
and  I  am  not  prepared  to  dispute  his  hy- 
pothesis. 

THREE  METHODS  OF  TRANSPLANTING.— 
There  are  three  common  methods  of  trans- 
planting citrus  trees: 

1st.  Balling  or  sacking  the  roots. 

2d.  Puddling  the  roots. 

3d.  Packing  the  roots  in  damp  straw. 


52 


THE  OKANGE, 


BALLING.— This  is  undoubtedly  the  best 
method,  though  the  most  laborious  and 
expensive.  Trees  that  are  carefully  balled 
and  well  planted  seldom  lose  their  leaves, 
and,  with  the  next  succeeding  period  of 
growth,  are  almost  sure  to  make  a  start. 
The  operation  of  balling  is  thus  per- 
formed : 

A  trench  fourteen  to  sixteen  inches  deep 
is  dug  along  one  side  of  the  nursery  row 
cutting  the  earth  about  six  inches  from 
the  stalks.    Then  the  digger  takes  a  sharp- 
edged  spade,  and  by  carefully  working 
under  from  the  bottom  of  the  trench  ex- 
poses the  tap  root.    This  he  severs  by  a 
well  directed  blow  or  two.    Next,  vertical 
cuts  are  made  in  the  soil  on  each  side  of 
the  tree  transversely  with  the  trench,  and 
a  block  of  earth  about  a  foot  each  way  is 
formed.    This  block  is  carefully  shaved 
off  and  rounded.    Lastly,  the  spade  is  in- 
serted in  the  side  opposite  the  trench,  and 
the  ball  is  loosened  from  the  contiguous 
ground.    A  little  more  shaving  makes  it 
symmetrical  all  round.     The    ball    thus 
formed  should    be    grasped     with    both 
hands,  and  the  tree  lifted  from  its  place 
and    set    upon  the  half  of  a    grain  bag 
already  provided  and  spread   upon    the 
ground  close   by.    It  generally  happens 
that  the  end  of  the  tap  root  projects  an 
inch  or  two  below  the  ball  of  earth.    Ac- 
cordingly a  little  slit  is  made  in  the  middle 
of  the  grain  bag,  through  which  the  end 
of  root  protrudes.    The  edges  of  the  bag 
are  then  drawn  up  tightly  about  the  ball, 
and  fastened  by  winding  with  bailing  rope 
or  stitched  with  stout  twine.    If  the  ball 
is  tied,  the  rope  is  first  wound  about  it 
vertically  with  a  hitch  around  the  stock  at 
the  top  and  another  about  the  tap  root  at 
the  bottom  to  hold  the  wrap  in  place.  Two 
vertical  wraps  are   made,  crossing  each 
other  at  right  angles,  top  and  bottom,  and 
a  third  turn  is  made  about  the  ball  hori- 
zontally, describing  an  equator  about  the 
two  former  meridians.    The  whole  being 
made  snug  and  tight  so  that  the  enclosed 
earth  cannot  shake  loose  from  the  roots, 
the   balling   is   complete.      Balled    trees 
should  be  handled  very  carefully,  and  not 
transported  long  distances  in  a    lumber 
wagon  if  a  spring  wagon  is  to  be  had  for 
the  purpose. 


BROKEN  BALLS. — If  by  any  mischance 
the  dirt  is  crumbled  within  the  sack  the 
wrappings  should  be  removed  entirely 
upon  planting  the  tree. 

CONDITION  OF  THE  SOIL  FOR  BALLING.— 
From  the  description  given  of  the  process 
of  balling,  it  must  be  evident  to  the  rea- 
der that  the  soil  should  have  a  good  degree 
of  coherence  to  allow  so  much  handling. 
A  clayish  sandy  soil  is  best  for  balling. 
But  the  most  favorable  soil  even,  must  be 
taken  at  just  the  proper  time  to  make  the 
operation  successful.  About  the  third  or 
fourth  day  after  a  rain  or  an  irrigation  is  a 
safe  time  to  begin  sacking. 

WHEN  SACKING  is  NOT  DESIRABLE. — It 
is  not  best  to  sack  trees  if  they  are  taken 
from  a  stiff  clay  soil,  or  any  soil,  in  fact, 
that  is  likely  to  bake  hard.  If  the  balls  of 
earth  become  thus  set  they  enclose  the 
roots  like  a  mold  of  plaster  of  Paris,  and 
the  tree  cannot  thrive. 

PUDDLING.— In  this  method  of  trans- 
planting,   the    trench    is  first  excavated 
and  the  tap  roots  cut  as  previously  de- 
scribed.   No  effort  is  made,  however,  to 
preserve  the  earth  intact  about  the  roots. 
The  tree  being  loosened,  it  is  left  standing 
in  the  trench  with  a  shovelf  ull  of  dirt  upon 
the  roots  to  keep  them  from  drying.    A 
puddle  is  formed  at  some  convenient  point 
by  mixing  loam  and  clay  to  the  consist- 
ancy  of  thick  cream.   A  sufficient  number 
of  trees  having  been  dug,  they  are  gath- 
ered up,  a  few  at  a  time,  and  the  roots  of 
each  immersed  in  the  puddle.    They  are 
thus  encased  with  a  film  of  soil  which 
protects  them  from  the  drying  action  of 
the  air.    As  an  additional  precaution,  the 
roots  are  parked  in  damp  straw  for  transit. 
For  shipment  long  distances,  a  number  of 
trees  may  be  bunched  together  and  their 
roots  packed  with  damp  straw  in  a  barrel. 
The  stocks  and  tops  are  generally  wrapped 
with  burlap,  rushes  or  other  material  as  a 
means  of  protection.    The  only  objection 
I  have  ever  heard  urged  against  puddling 
trees  is  that  the  film  of  earth  is  sometimes 
set  so  firmly  upon  the  small  roots  that  it 
chokes  them,  after  the    manner    of   the 
baked  or  hardened  ball  already  alluded  to. 
PACKING  IN  DAMP  STRAW.— With  this 
method  the  tree  is  prepared  in  the  same 
manner  as  just  described,  except  that  the 
puddling    operation   is  omitted.    I    have 


ITS  CULTUKE  IN  CALIFOKNIA. 


53 


transplanted  trees  by  this  method  as  well 
as  by  puddling  and  balling,  and  I  find  that 
the  damp  straw  alone  answers  every  re- 
quirement. 
The  principal  precaution  to  be  observed 


in  transplanting  orange  trees  is  to  avoid 
the  contact  of  air  with  the  roots.  If  the 
roots  be  thoroughly  dried,  the  vitality  of 
the  tree  is  lost. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


PLANTING  AN  ORCHARD. 


DIGGING  THE  HOLES.— The  stakes  for 
the  orchard  having  been  set  as  described 
in  a  preceding  chapter,  the  next  operation 
is  digging  the  holes. 

SIZE  OF  HOLES.— If  the  ground  has  been 
properly  prepared,  there  is  no  necessity 
for  digging  the  hole  larger  than  requi- 
site for  admitting  the  roots  of  the  tree. 
If  the  trees  are  balled,  a  hole  large  enough 
to  receive  the  ball  is  sufficient;  if  not 
balled,  make  it  large  enough  to  admit  the 
roots  in  a  natural  position,  i.  e.  without 
doubling  on  themselves.  For  the  aver- 
age three  or  four-year-old  stock  a  hole 
eighteen  to  twenty  inches  across  and  the 
same  depth  is  ample. 

THE  PLANTING  BOARD.— A  device  in 
almost  universal  use  for  fixing  the  point 
where  the  tree  should  stand  is  known  as 
the  planting  board. 


<c 


FIG.  20— THE  PLANTING  BOARD. 

It  is  a  light  strip  about  five  feet  long, 
with  a  notch  (A)  cut  in  the  middle,  and 
Botches  B  and  C  at  the  extremities,  as 
shown  in  the  figure. 

MANNER  OF  USING  THE  BOARD.— When 
about  to  dig  the  hole  place  the  board  on 
the  ground  so  that  the  central  notch  A 
shall  fit  against  the  stake.  Stick  pins  at 
notches  B  and  C.  The  board  may  now  be 
removed  and  the  original  stake  at  A  pulled 
up  and  the4  hole  dug  in  its  place.  When ' 
planting  the  tree,  the  exact  place  where  it 
should  stand  is  fixed  by  replacing  the 
board  so  that  the  notches  B  and  C  fit  upon 
their  respective  pegs,  and  the  tree  stan- 
ing  in  the  hole,  is  held  upright  at  the 
notch  A. 

It  is  not  necessary  that  the  board  be 
always  laid  on  a  parallel  with  the  orchard 


lines,  as  a  little  variation  in  the  angle  will 
make  no  difference  in  determining  the 
middle  point;  but  it  is  essential  that  the 
board  be  placed  on  the  same  side  of  the 
stakes  each  time.  For  example,  if  it  is 
on  the  south  side  of  the  stake  when  the 
pins  at  the  extremities  are  stuck,  then  it 
should  be  adjusted  to  these  pins  exactly  in 
the  same  manner  when  the  tree  is  set  and 
the  board  be  on  the  south  side  of  the  tree. 
To  avoid  confusion  it  is  best  to  follow  one 
rule  throughout  the  orchard,  placing  the 
board  always  on  the  same  side  of  the 
stakes. 

THROWING  THE  DIRT.— In  digging  the 
holes  it  is  best  to  throw  the  dirt  clear  of 
the  pegs  so  that  it  shall  not  interfere  with 
the  replacing  of  the  board.  In  localities 
where  the  surface  earth  is  richer  than  the 
subsoil,  painstaking  planters  throw  the 
top  earth  in  a  pile  by  itself  so  that  it  can 
be  first  returned  to  the  hole,  about  the 
roots,  and  the  poorer  soil  filled  in  at  the 
top. 

PLANTING. — Two  men  work  together 
to  the  greatest  advantage  in  planting— one 
to  place  the  board  and  hold  the  tree,  and 
the  other  to  shovel  in  the  earth.  The 
operation  is  thus  very  quickly  performed. 
If  the  trees  are  sacked,  the  balls  arQ  placed 
in  the  holes  without  disturbing  the  wrap- 
ping, which  will  shortly  rot  away  and 
offer  no  impediment  to  the  growing  roots. 
If  not  sacked  do  not  take  them  from  their 
packing  of  straw  until  ready  to  plant 
each  in  turn.  Then  handle  with  as  much 
celerity  as  possible  without  slighting  the 
work.  The  lateral  roots  should  be  care- 
fully arranged  in  the  hole  so  that  they  lie 
in  a  natural  position,  none  being  doubled 
up  or  crossed. 

LACERATED  ROOTS.— If  the  tap  root  or 
laterals  are  lacerated,  cut  away  the  injured 


54 


THE  OKANGE, 


part.  It  is  easier  for  the  tree  to  make  new 
I  roots  than  to  heal  up  old  ones. 

DEPTB- — The  tree  should  be  planted  the 
same  depth  that  it  was  in  nursery. 

FILLING. — I  have  found  it  best  to  fill  the 
hole  only  about  half  full,  leaving  a  basin 
to  receive  water  and  then  complete  the 
filling  after  irrigation. 

SETTLING  THE  EARTH.— It  is  not  neces- 
sary to  spend  time  tramping  the  earth 
down  upon  the  roots,  as  the  water  to  be 
applied  will  settle  it  more  effectually  than 
it  is  possible  to  do  with  the  foot. 

IRRIGATING. — Citrus  trees  should  al- 
ways be  irrigated  as  soon  as  planted.  Run 
the  basin  at  each  tree  full,  and  after  the 
water  has  soaked  away,  fill  in  with  dry 
earth,  which  prevents  evaporation. 

STRAIGHTENING  UP. — When  all  are 
planted  go  through  the  orchard  and  right 
up  such  trees  as  may  be  found  leaning. 

ADDITIONAL  PRUNING. — If  the  tree 
shows  a  tendency  to  wilt,  it  is  a  good  plan 
to  prune  it  still|further,  even  cutting  away 
to  a  few  leaves  or  none  at  all. 

INDICATIONS. — If  a  tree  wilts  and  the 
leaves  cling  to  their  stems,  becoming  dry 
and  dead,  the  chances  are  that  the  tree  is 
lost.  If  the  leaves  drop  off,  the  tree  will 
almost  surely  put  forth  new  ones. 

WASHING  THE  TREES.— If  the  trees  are 
infested  with  any  sort  of  scale  or  smut, 
wash  them  thoroughly  with  soap  suds, 
scrubbing  the  stocks  and  spraying  the 
tops.  It  is  but  fair  to  give  them  a  clean 
start. 

WRAPPING  THE  STOCKS.— If  rabbits  or 
rodents  are  apt  to  prove  troublesome,  it  is 
a  good  plan  to  wrap  the  stocks  with  paper 
and  tie  lightly  with  twine.  This  keeps 
the  animals  from  gnawing  the  bark.  The 
wrapping  is  also  a  good  protection  to  the 
young  and  tender  stocks  against  the  hot 
sun.  Some  people  whitewash  their  trees 
instead  of  wrapping  them  and  are  well 
pleased  with  the  result. 

DESIGNATING  VARIETIES. — If  you  plant 
several  varieties  of  trees,  the  best  way  to 
keep  track  of  them  is  to  make  a  diagram 
of  the  orchard  in  some  convenient  book 
of  record,  designating  varieties  by  num- 
bered rows.  Tags  on  trees  are  a  nuisance, 
and  besides,  soon  become  weather-worn 
and  obliterated.  The  same  is  true  of  let- 
ered  stakes  in  the  orchard  ground. 


LOST  TIME.— The  orange  tree  in  trans- 
planting loses  a  year's  growth;  this  under 
the  most  favorable  circumstances.  I  do 
not  mean  to  say  that  it  utterly  fails  to  grow 
the  first  year  after  removal,  but  that  the 
check  which  it  sustains  reduces  its  aver- 
age size  to  that  of  trees  a  year  younger, 
not  transplanted. 

NEW  GROWTH.— At  the  next  succeeding 
season  of  growth,  if  the  conditions  are  all 
favorable,  the  tree  puts  forth  new  shoots 
from  the  stock  and  branches.  Often  these 
shoots  make  their  first  appearance  upon 
the  stock,  and  cover  it  with  a  thick  growth 
down  to  the  very  ground. 

WATER  SPROUTS.— These  shoots,  below 
the  point  where  they  are  serviceable  as 
branches,  are  called  water-sprouts,  and 
they  must  be  trimmed  off  at  the  earliest 
practicable  opportunity.  However  it  is 
not  always  advisable  to  break  off  these 
sprouts  as  soon  as  they  appear.  If  the 
upper  part  of  the  tree  has  started  new 
growth  simultaneously  with  the  stock, 
then  the  stock  should  be  cleared,  and  the 
earlier  the  better.  Rub  off  the  incipient 
shoots  when  no  bigger  than  the  point  of 
a  pin  and  the  vitality  of  the  tree  will  go 
into  the  top,  provided  the  top  is  ready  to 
receive  it.  But  when  the  water-sprouts 
are  the  only  growth  the  tree  attempts  to 
make,  it  is  advisable  to  let  them  remain 
for  the  good  they  may  do.  The  leaves 
thus  put  forth  will  elaborate  the  sap  and 
start  the  vital  forces  of  the  tree  through- 
out. With  the  additional  strength  thus 
gained  the  top  buds,  in  turn  will  be  pushed 
forth,  and  when  these  shall  have 
formed  branches  and  leaves  the  water- 
sprouts  may  be  safely  dispensed  with. 
Should  the  top  utterly  fail  to  grow,  and 
become  dead,  the  topmost  or  most  vigor- 
ous of  the  water-sprouts  may  be  preserved 
to  form  a  new  stock  and  top. 

SUCKERS.— This  growth  which  starts 
from  the  crown  of  the  roots  just  below 
the  surface  of  the  ground  should  be  cut 
off  as  soon  as  discovered,  as  it  will  sap  the 
life  of  the  tree  if  allowed  to  grow.  Only 
in  one  instance  is  there  an  exception  to 
the  rule  of  destruction  of  suckers.  If  you 
are  satisfied  the  main  stock  is  dead  or 
likely  to  die,  the  sucker  may  be  left  to 
form  a  new  tree.  But  bear  in  mind,  the 
sucker  tree  will  be  a  seedling. 


ITS  CULTUBE  IN  CALIFOENIA. 


SLOW  STARTING.— Sometimes  a  tree  man- 
ifests no  signs  of  growing  at  the  first  or 
second  or  third  season  after  transplanting. 
Sometimes  while  maintaining  a  healthy 
hue  of  stock  and  limb,  it  remains  dormant 
a  whole  year.  In  such  cases  there  is  noth- 
ing to  do  but  to  see  that  the  tree  has  suffi- 
cient irrigation  and  cultivation,  and  await 
results.  When  it  finally  starts,  as  start  it 
will,  the  lost  time  maybe  in  a  great  meas- 
ure retrived  by  the  extra  vigor  of  growth. 

BACKSETS.— When  newly  transplanted 
trees  are  frosted  or  preyed  upon  by  grass- 


hoppers, gophers,  squirrels,  rabbits  or 
other  pests — the  foliage  destroyed  and  the 
bark  injured — they  may  languish  for  the 
first  year  and  make  a  start  in  the  second. 
STUNTED  TUBES.— A  second  or  third 
backset,  however,  and  sometimes  the  first 
if  severe,  is  sufficient  to  stunt  the  tree* 
When  satisfied  that  a  tree  is  stunted,  the 
best  thing  you  can  do  is  to  dig  it  up  and 
throw  it  away.  It  might,  with  careful 
nursing,  make  out  to  live,  but  its  exist- 
ence would  be  sickly  and  unprofitable. 
Do  not  waste  your  labor  upon  it. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

CULTIVATION. 


OBJECT  OF  CULTIVATION.  — All  soils, 
loose  and  compact  alike,  form  a  sort  of 
crust  upon  the  surface  under  the  action 
of  rain  and  sunshine.  Scientists  tell  us 
that  the  fine  particles  thus  pressed  to- 
gether form  a  series  of  ducts  or  flues, 
which  by  capillary  attraction  suck  up  the 
moisture  from  beneath  and  send  it  off  in 
the  form  of  vapor.  The  first  office  of  cul- 
tivation is  to  break  up  these  ducts,  and 
thus  summarily  check  the  loss  of  moist- 
ure from  the  soil.  The  second  office  of 
cultivation  is  to  destroy  the  weeds,  for 
they,  too,  draw  up,  appropriate  to  their 
own  use  and  evaporate  a  share  of  the 
moisture.  The  whole  end  and  object  of 
cultivation  then  is  to  conserve  the  supply 
of  water  in  the  earth.  It  would  be  well  if 
this  fact  were  more  constantly  borne  in 
mind.  Some  people  think  that  if  they 
cultivate  enough  to  keep  the  weeds  out  of 
their  orchards  they  fulfill  every  require- 
ment. This  is  not  the  case.  They  are 
merely  attending  to  one  of  the  incidentals 
of  cultivation. 

CULTIVATION  versus  IRRIGATION. — It  is 
saidthat  the  most  successful  physician 
is  he  who  directs  his  efforts  towards  aid- 
ing Nature  in  the  work  of  recuperation. 
So,  I  may  say,  the  most  successful  culti- 
vator is  the  one  who  most  aids  Nature  to 
preserve  her  store  of  moisture.  In  setting 
out  to  raise  an  orchard,  were  I  given  my 
choice  of  cultivation  without  irrigation  or 
irrigation  without  cultivation,  I  would 


unhesitatingly  pin  my  faith  to  cultivation 
alone.  In  the  case  of  orange  trees  it  has 
been  demonstrated  by  Dr.  O.  H.  Congar, 
of  Pasadena,  that  they  may  be  grown  in 
his  locality  without  any  artificial  supply 
of  water,  but  he  concedes  that,  to  obtain 
profitable  results  from  trees  in  bearing, 
they  must  be  irrigated.  Probably  the 
middle  ground,  which  comprehends 
thorough  cultivation  and  judicious  irriga- 
tion is  best,  even  in  bringing  an  orchard 
up  to  the  bearing  point.  Herein  many  of 
the  old  growers  made  a  fatal  mistake. 
They  flooded  the  ground  a  half  dozen 
times  a  year  and  did  not  stir  it  half  enough . 
The  result  is  manifest  in  stunted,  gnarled 
and  diseased  trees— trees  that  produce  in- 
ferior fruit  and  are  dead  when  they  ought 
to  be  in  their  prime. 

WHEN  AND  How  TO  CULTIVATE— PLOW- 
ING.—As  soon  as  the  rainy  season  is  well 
inaugurated  it  is  best  to  plow  the  orchard 
ground  with  a  single  plow,  throwing  a 
furrow  against  the  trees  on  each  side,  and 
leaving  a  dead  furrow  in.  the  middle  be- 
tween the  rows.  This  mellows  the  soil  so 
that  it  is  in  the  best  condition  to  drink  up 
the  rains,  and,  should  there  be  a  surplus 
of  water  it  will  run  to  the  dead  farrows 
instead  of  standing  about  the  trees  to  their 
detriment.  In  case  the  orchard  is  located 
on  sloping  ground,  it  is  best  to  run  the  fur- 
rows diagonally  down  the  decline,  as  they 
thus  furnish  an  easy  fall  for  the  surplus 
water.  If  the  furrows  lead  directly  down 


56 


THE  ORANGE, 


the  descent  the  soil  washes  badly;  and  if 
they  are  made  transversely  the  water  col- 
lects, breaks  over  and  runs  straight  down, 
washing  the  soil  as  much  as  in  the  former 
instance.  The  single  plowing  in  the  fall 
or  early  winter  I  regard  as  ample  for  this 
kind  of  cultivation,  if  the  soil  is  reasona- 
bly loose.  Should  it  be  of  such  character, 
however,  as  to  be  considerably  compacted 
by  the  winter  rains,  another  plowing  in 
early  spring  is  required.  At  most,  do  not 
plow  more  than  twice  in  a  year.  After 
the  dry  season  has  set  in,  deep  cultivation 
causes  evaporation  rather  than  retarding 
it.  In  plowing  be  careful  not  to  go  too 
deep  in  the  first  half  dozen  furrows  next 
the  trees.  Avoid  lacerating  the  roots  which 
may  lie  near  the  surface,  though  I  will 
say  frankly  that  if  they  are  close  enough 
to  be  much  interfered  with  by  a  single 
plow,  it  is  a  bad  sign — a  sign  of  too  much 
irrigation. 

CULTIVATING. — Aside  from  the  one  or 
two  plowings,  the  rest  of  the  year's  work 
is  done  with  the  cultivator,  followed,  in 
some  instances,  by  the  harrow  or  clod 
crusher  or  "slicker."  Many  kinds  of 
cultivators  are  in  use,  from  the  old-style 
hand  implement,  drawn  by  one  horse,  to 
the  Acme  and  others,  with  a  seat  for  the 
driver,  and  requiring  two,  three  or  four 
horses.  In  selecting  an  implement,  the 
orchardist  must  be  guided  by  the  require- 
ments of  his  ground  and  the  amplitude  of 
his  purse.  Each  implement  in  use  is  prob- 
ably best  adapted  to  some  particular  soil. 
If  the  ground  is  stony,  one  kind  may  not 
work  at  all;  if  inclined  to  break  up  in 
clods,  another  may  be  useless.  Study 
your  requirements  and  see  what  your 
neighbors  use  and  like  best  before  you  in- 
vest in  an  implement.  During  the  spring 
months  it  is  a  good  plan  to  cultivate  after 
every  rain.  Each  rain  may  prove  the  last 
of  the  season,  you  know,  and  it  will  not 
do  to  lose  any  moisture  that  may  be  hus- 
banded for  the  long,  dry  summer.  For 


soils  that  are  more  or  less  stiff,  a  clod- 
crusher,  constructed  of  planks,  to  drag 
over  the  ground  and  mash  down  the 
lumps  is  in  general  use.  Some  growers 
employ,  on  more  mellow  soils,  a  "slick- 
er," an  implement  not  altogether  unlike  a 
stone-boat,  by  which  the  surface  is  re- 
duced to  a  fine  tilth  and  smoothed  off  like 
a  shirt  bosom.  This  gives  an  orchard  a 
most  tidy  and  well-kept  appearance  after 
cultivation,  and  is  practical  as  well  as 
esthetic.  The  harrow  is  occasionally  used 
to  run  over  the  ground  and  break  the 
lumps  or  the  crust  that  may  have  formed 
after  a  rain.  I  would  not  advise  a  very 
constant  use  of  the  harrow,  however,  as 
its  effect  is  to  pack  the  soil  just  below  the 
surface.  There  is  also  more  likelihood  of 
injury  to  the  trees  from  it.  In  all  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  orchard,  I  must  enjoin  the 
greatest  care.  Both  a  steady  horse  and  a 
steady  and  experienced  man  should  be 
employed,  or  great,  perhaps  irreparable, 
damage  may  result.  It  is  a  good  plan  to 
use  a  short  single-tree  or  to  wrap  the  ends 
with  cloths  to  avoid  barking  the  trees. 

After  the  rains  are  over,  it  is  necessary 
that  the  orchard  ground  be  at  all  times  in 
a  mellow  condition  and  free  from  weeds. 
For  this,  one  cultivation  a  month  general- 
ly suffices.  A  cultivation  should  follow 
each  irrigation  if  water  has  been  run  on 
the  surface  at  all.  To  make  a  clean  job  of 
weed  exterminating,  I  have  found  it  best 
to  let  a  man  follow  the  cultivator  with  a 
hoe  and  chop  up  everything  that  escapes 
the  implement.  Some  of  the  three  and 
four-horse  cultivators  have  weed  cutters 
attached,  but  even  with  them  it  is  neces- 
sary to  hoe  the  weeds  close  to  the  trees. 

JUDGMENT  THE  BEST  MONITOR.— If  the 
orchardist  have  a  knowledge  of  the  theory 
of  cultivation,  his  own  judgment  will  be 
the  best  guide  as  to  when  and  how  the 
work  should  be  done.  Only  let  him  be 
thorough  if  he  would  command  success. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

IRRIGATION. 


Tin:  IRRIGATING  SEASON.— From  the 
first  of  April  to  the  first  of  November  may 
be  accounted  California's  rainless  season. 


There  are  exceptions,  of  course,  as  in  the 
year  1884,  when  rain  fell  in  all  these  so- 
called  dry  months  except  July;  but,  tak- 


ITS  CULTUEE  IN  CALIFOKNIA. 


57 


ing  one  year  with  another  and  averaging 
the  longer  with  the  shorter  seasons,  the 
seven-months  rule  will  hold  good.  It  is 
during  this  rainless  period  that  irrigation 
becomes  necessary  to  sustain  vegetable 
life.  Formerly  irrigation  was  much  more 
general  and  frequent  than  in  latter  years. 
Within  a  comparatively  recent  period  it 
has  been  determined  that  thorough  culti- 
vation will,  in  a  great  measure,  reduce  the 
necessity  of  applying  water  artificially, 
and,  in  the  case  of  many  varieties  of 
grapes  and  deciduous  trees,  irrigation  may 
be  dispensed  with  entirely.  Orange  trees 
to  thrive  well  and  bring  forth  profitable 
crops,  must  be  irrigated. 

OVER-lKRIGATION   TO    BE   AVOIDED It 

is  a  mistake,  however,  to  suppose  that 
because  some  water  is  good,  a  great  deal 
more  water  is  better.  No  error  is  more 
pernicious  or,  in  the  end,  more  certainly 
ruinous  to  trees  than  excessive  irrigation. 

In  1877  a  committee  of  the  Southern 
California  Horticultural  Society,  appoint- 
ed to  investigate  the  matter  of  irrigation, 
made  a  valuable  report,  which  was  sum- 
marized in  the  following  paragraph: 

"The  systems  of  irrigation  in  use 
throughout  the  district  are  varied.  Many 
use  the  old  system  of  flooding  the  entire 
ground  every  three  or  four  weeks,  using 
water  to  the  exclusion  of  cultivation. 
Others  irrigate  less  and  cultivate  more. 
We  find,  in  fact,  all  phases  of  irrigation 
and  cultivation,  from  all  water  and  no 
work  to  all  work  and  no  water.  Neither 
extreme  is  profitable,  but  a  golden  mean 
of  two  or  three  thorough  irrigations,  with 
thoroguh  cultivation,  your  committee  be- 
lieve the  orcbardist  will  find  the  most  suc- 
cessful. On  heavy  soils  the  water  should 
not  touch  the  tree  and  great  care  should 
be  exercised  after  each  irrigation  that  the 
ground  may  not  bake." 

A  MATTER  OF  EDUCATION.— When  the 
ground  about  the  tree  is  frequently  flood- 
ed, the  roots  are  drawn  to  the  surface. 
The  tree  then  becomes  more  sensitive  to 
every  change  of  moisture,  and  if  water  is 
not  applied  at  the  regular  and  frequent 
intervals  to  which  the  tree  has  been  accus- 
tomed, it  wilts  and  droops.  It  is  not  to  be 
supposed  that  the  best  of  human  care  can 
furnish  a  supply  equal  to  the  storage  res- 
ervoirs of  nature  which  lie  deeper  in  the 


earth,  and  to  which  the  roots  ought  to  be 
encouraged  to  go  for  their  supplies.  Trees 
are  creatures  of  habit  no  less  than  men, 
and,  "as  the  twig  is  bent,  the  tree's  in- 
clined." It  is  best  to  commence  this  edu- 
cation early;  if  you  postpone  it  too  long 
your  orchard  is  likely  to  prove  a  lot  of 
spoiled  children  on  your  hands. 

How  MUCH  TO  IRRIGATE.— During  the 
first  summer  after  planting  young  orange 
trees,  it  may  be  necessary  to  water  them 
every  month  or  six  weeks.  Make  it  a 
point  to  be  thorough  with  your  work  when 
you  do  irrigate.  Let  the  water  penetrate 
deep,  and  assist  the  young  roots  in  work- 
ing down.  Do  not  under  any  circumstan- 
ces, allow  the  ground  to  remain  after  ir- 
rigating in  a  sodden  condition,  to  bake 
hard  and  evaporate  the  moisture  almost 
as  rapidly  as  it  was  applied.  A  tree  thus 
neglected  is  soon  in  a  worse  condition 
than  it  would  have  been  if  it  had  received 
no  irrigation  at  all.  I  have  found  it  the 
best  plan  in  treating  young  trees  to  exca- 
vate a  considerable  basin  about  each  tree 
and  fill  this  basin  with  water  once  or  even 
twice  if  deemed  necessary.  Then,  after 
the  water  has  entirely  soaked  away,  fill 
the  basin  with  dry  earth.  This  covering 
acts  as  a  mulch,  preventing  the  evapora- 
tion of  the  water  applied,  and  the  tree  is 
prepared  to  wait  a  long  time  for  another 
drink.  The  second  summer,  trees  will 
flourish  with  three  or  four  irrigations,  and 
the  third  summer  they  will  thrive  with 
two  or  three. 

WANT  OF  IRRIGATION— How  MANIFEST- 
ED.— Be  governed  by  circumstances.  If 
you  see  that  a  tree  is  suffering,  as  indicat- 
ed by  curled  or  wilted  and  leathery  leaves 
and  drooping  stems,  do  not  delay  the  ap- 
plication of  water.  It  needs  help  at  once. 
If  you  follow  the  plan  here  indicated  and 
do  your  work  thoroughly,  you  will  find 
these  calls  less  and  less  frequent  as  the 
tree  obtains  its  foothold  on  terra  firma. 
You  will  then  have  brought  it  up  in  the 
way  it  should  go,  and  it  will  reward  you 
in  future  by  a  healthy  and  profitable  life 
and  a  minimum  of  labor  exacted  for  its 
sustenance.  It  is  not  advisable  to  leave 
the  tree  until  it  hangs  out  its  signals  of  dis- 
tress before  applying  water.  Keep  a  sharp 
watch  over  your  orchard  and  you  may  de- 
tect the  premonitory  symptoms  in  one  or 


58 


THE  ORANGE, 


two  trees.  Then  you  know  the  whole  or- 
chard will  shortly  be  in  the  same  condi- 
tion, and  it  is  time  to  begin  another  irri- 
gation. Although  the  orange  is  a  hardy 
tree,  and,  when  watered,  quickly  revives 
from  a  most  distressed  condition,  it  is 
better  that  this  check  to  its  grouth  "be 
avoided  altogether  by  keeping  it  constant- 
ly fresh  and  vigorous. 

VARIOUS  METHODS  OF  IRRIGATION. — 
There  are  many  different  ways  of  irriga- 
ting trees,  each  one  adapted  to  its  locality 
and  circumstances. 

THE  OLD  WAY— FLOODING.— On  the 
most  level  lands  of  the  valley  water  is 
run  in  ditches  or  zanjas  and  turned  into 
the  orchard,  flooding  the  entire  surface. 
This  method  of  running  water  in  open 
ditches  implies  three  things:  1st— An 
abundance  of  water;  2d— nearly  level  land; 
3d — a  tolerably  compact  soil,  so  that  the 
water  is  carried  in  the  ditch  without  too 
great  wastage.  After  the  irrigation  the 
entire  surface  should  be  cultivated. 

THE  BASIN  METHOD. — A  more  modern 
and  better  system  consists  in  turning  the 
water  into  baisins  made  about  the  trees. 
The  baisin  may  be  round  or  square,  and 
consists  of  a  ridge  or  dyke  thrown  up  to 
retain  the  water  about  the  trees  until  it 
seeps  away.  Latterly  a  plow  has  been  in- 
vented for  throwing  up  these  ridges,  and 
a  man  and  a  team  can  make  with  it  a 
hundred  baisins  a  day.  The  size  of  the 
basin  increases  with  the  age  of  the  tree, 
the  plan  usually  followed  being  to  make 
it  as  broad  as  the  overhanging  top.  When 
the  trees  are  full-grown  these  baisins  are 
generally  made  contiguous,  so  that  nearly 
the  entire  surface  of  the  ground  is  flooded. 

IRRIGATING  IN  FURROWS.  —  Another 
plan  is  to  run  two  or  three  furrows  along 
each  side  of  a  row  of  trees,  and  graduate 
the  supply  of  water  so  that  it  will  fill  all 
the  furrows  without  overflowing.  In  this 
manner  the  water  is  allowed  to  run  from 
six  to  twelve  hours,  and  by  seepage  the 
ground  is  thoroughly  moistened  along  the 
entire  row.  If  the  head  of  water  is  suffi- 
cient, a  number  of  rows  may  be  watered 
simultaneously,  the  supply  for  each  being 
diverted  from  the  main  stream.  The 
arrangement  for  this  purpose  is  a  flume 
running  along  the  highest  side  of  the  or- 
chard. From  this  flume  the  irrigating 


furrows  lead  out  at  right  angles,  and  the 
water  is  supplied  to  them  through  auger- 
holes  in  the  side  of  the  flume. 

SUB-IRRIGATION.— A  few  years  ago  some 
Los  Angeles  gentlemen  patented  a  system 
of  sub-irrigation,  and  it  has  been  intro- 
duced to  a  slight  extent.  It  consists  of  a 
series  of  concrete  pipes  laid  in  the  ground 
deep  enough  to  escape  the  cultivator,  and 
through  them  water  is  conveyed  and  ap- 
plied directly  to  the  roots  of  every  tree 
in  an  orchard.  An  ingenuous  machine 
worked  by  hand  makes  and  lays  the  pipe 
simultaneously,  turning  it  out  (pardon 
the  simile)  very  much  as  a  butcher  turns 
out  bologna  sausages  with  his  stuffer. 
The  pipe  is  thus  made  continuous,  and 
there  are  no  joints  to  bother  either  in  the 
making  or  the  leaking  afterward.  A  plug 
of  established  size  allows  a  little  of  the 
water  to  exude  beneath  each  tree,  and  it 
gradually  seeps  through  the  soil,  fur- 
nishing a  reliable  supply,  and  that  ap- 
plied where  it  will  do  the  most  good.  Of 
course  quite  a  complicated  system  of 
pipes  is  required,  with  a  main  running 
from  the  water  supply  and  laterals  ex- 
tending along  each  row  of  trees  or  between 
each  two  rows.  There  is  also  a  piece  of 
pipe  set  vertically  over  each  irrigating 
orifice,  extending  to  the  surface^like  a 
miniature  well.  This  receives  the  water 
as  discharged  allowing  it  gradually  to 
soak  away,  and  at  the  same  time  prevents 
the  earth  from  baking  over  the  orifice  and 
closing  it  up.  The  only  mechanical  ob- 
jection I  have  to  the  system  is  its  compli- 
cation and  the  likelihood  of  its  getting 
out  of  order.  There  is  also  danger  of  de- 
stroying the  vertical  pipes  or  wells  in 
cultivation.  A  still  more  serious  objec- 
tion is  the  great  cost,  which  amounts  to 
something  like  fifty  or  sixty  dollars  an 
acre.  This  system  has  been  in  use  for 
some  years  in  a  number  of  places  in 
Southern  California,  and  has  generally 
given  satisfaction.  There  is  by  this  meth- 
od a  great  saving  in  the  labor  of  irrigating 
as  well  as  in  working  the  ground.  The 
water  being  applied  beneath  the  surface, 
does  the  tree  the  utmost  possible  good 
and  at  the  same  time  does  not  start  the 
weeds  or  cause  the  ground  to  bake.  The 
invention  is  as  meritorious  as  it  is  ingen- 
ious. 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


59 


An  improvement  on  the  above-named 
system  of  sub-irrigation  has  been  invent- 
ed and  patented  by  Mr.  L.  M.  Holt,  of 
Riverside,  and  is  in  process  of  introduc- 
tion. It  comprehends  a  system  of  pipes 
as  recounted,  but  dispenses  with  the  ver- 
tical wells,  which  are  referred  to  as  ob- 
jectionable. 

MESA  IRRIGATION .— On  the  mesas  it 
frequently  happens  that  the  irrigating 
stream  is  not  large  enough  to  allow  of 
the  first  three  methods  named;  or  that  the 
pitch  of  the  ground  is  too  abrupt  and  the 
soil  too  porous  to  admit  of  the  running  of 
water  in  open  ditches  at  all.  Here  the 
most  painstaking  and  economical  meth- 
ods are  in  vogue.  The  water  is  generally 
distributed  in  wooden  flumes  or  in  cement 
or  iron  pipes,  and  applied  directly  to 
basins  made  about  the  trees.  With  water 
confined  in  a  pipe,  under  pressure,  and  a 
section  of  hose  to  apply  it  with,  a  man 
may  do  quite  as  good  execution  as  with  a 
considerable  head  flowing  by  gravitation 
in  a  ditch.  The  advantage  of  the  pipe 
and  hose  method  is  in  the  direct  and  easy 
application  and  the  avoidance  of  all  wast- 
age. 

DISTRIBUTING  BY  BARRELS.  —  Where 
pipes  and  flumes  are  not  available,  water 
is  sometimes  distributed  in  barrels  or 
tank  wagons.  A  hose-bibb  is  usually 


fastened  in  each  tank  or  barrel,  with  hose 
attached,  and  the  team  hauls  the  wagon 
along  as  rapidly  as  the  basins  are  filled. 
This  is  a  somewhat  slow  and  expensive 
method  of  irrigation,  however,  and  is  re- 
sorted to  only  when  more  ready  means  of 
distribution  are  not  available. 

CULTIVATING  AFTER  IRRIGATING.  — 
Where  the  basin  method  is  employed, 
and  dry  earth  shoveled  in  to  cover  all  the 
soil  that  is  wet,  as  well  as  where  sub- 
irrigation  is  in  use,  a  cultivation  is  by  no 
means  imperative;  but  with  all  flooding 
methods  the  cultivation  should  invariably 
follow. 

MULCHING.  —  Some  people  apply  a 
mulch  of  straw  to  the  basin  surfaces  after 
irrigation  and  thus  avoid  cultivating.  But 
this  system  has  its  drawbacks.  There  is 
almost  certain  to  be  enough  grain  in  the 
straw  to  seed  the  ground,  and  bring  forth 
a  crop  which  requires  more  labor  in  the 
hoeing  up  than  the  thorough  cultivation 
of  the  soil  would  have  amounted  to. 

Do  NOT  CULTIVATE  Too  SOON.— With 
clayey  soils,  and  in  fact  with  all  of  a  stiff 
nature  it  will  not  do  to  cultivate  directly 
after  irrigating.  A  practiced  eye  is  re- 
quired to  tell  just  when  the  ground  may 
be  stirred  without  danger  of  breaking  it 
up  into  lumps  and  clods. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


PRUNING. 


OBJECTS. — In  pruning  the  orange  tree 
there  are  two  objects  in  view— 

1st.  To  give  it  symmetry. 

2d.  To  make  it  healthy  and  productive. 
No  part  of  the  orchardist's  work  is  more 
entertaining  than  this,  because  it  furnishes 
intellectual  as  well  as  manual  occupation. 
Every  tree  is  a  study.  I  may  go  further, 
and  say  that  every  tree  is  a  new  study,  for 
there  is  such  an  infinite  variety  in  the 
combinations  of  stocks,  branches  and 
stems  that  novel  applications  of  the  gen- 
eral principles  of  pruning  occur  in  each 
instance.  A  man  who  would  prune  suc- 
cessfully must  keep  up  a  constant  think- 
ing, and  should  be  prepared  to  give  a 


good  and  sufficient  reason  for  every  cut 
he  makes.  His  employment  is  like  that 
of  the  sculptor,  for  he  is  transforming  an 
ungainly  object  into  one  of  beauty;  but 
unlike  the  sculptor,  the  pruner  must  cut 
deep,  calculating  to  a  nicety  how  nature 
may  be  relied  on  to  round  out  the  contour. 
It  is  necessary  that  the  pruner  keep  an 
ideal  constantly  in  mind,  and  that  from 
the  earliest  stages  of  his  work  he  strive 
for  the  accomplishment  of  his  ideal.  To 
this  end  he  should  thoroughly  inform 
himself  in  advance  of  the  general  theory 
of  pruning;  of  the  various  systems  em- 
ployed and  the  one  that  is  best  adapted  to 
his  own  orchard. 


60 


THE  CHANGE, 


Two  SYSTEMS  OF  PRUNING.— There  are 
two  systems  in  vogue,  one  known  as  high 
pruning,  the  other  as  low  pruning.  Low 
pruning  is  resorted  to  with  lemons  and 
the  dwarf  and  semi-dwarf  varieties  of 
budded  oranges.  It  consists  simply  in 
forming  the  head  of  the  tree  close  to  the 
ground— say  within  a  foot  or  two  of  the 
surface— and  modeling  the  growth  some- 
what after  a  shrub.  The  high  system 
prunes  away  the  branches  near  the 
ground,  exposing  the  trunk  and  forming 
a  conventional  tree  top.  This  method  is 
employed  with  nearly  all  seedling  trees 
that  grow  to  the  standard  size,  and  with  a 
considerable  portion  of  the  lemons  and 
budded  oranges. 

THE  Low  SYSTEM.  — The  advantages 
claimed  for  this  method  of  pruning  are 

1st.  That  the   head    of  the    tree  being 
brought  close  to  the  ground,  the  picking 
the  fruit  is  greatly  facilitated. 
2d.  That  the  trunk  is  closely  shaded, 
hereby  preventing  sunburn   and   other 
evils  coming  from  Loo  much  exposure  to 
the  weather. 

3d.  That  the  soil  immediately  about  the 
tree  is  shaded  and  the  moisture  thus  pre- 
served. 

With  this  method  of  pruning  also  the 
branches  are  usually  "shortened  in"  and 
this  results  in  a  fourth  advantage  in  that 
the  fruit  is  borne  closer  to  the  body  of  the 
tree,  and  the  branches  being  rendered 
stocky  from  the  cutting  back,  are  not  like- 
ly to  break  down  with  their  burden.  The 
tree  with  low  head  and  shortened  branch- 
es needs  no  props  in  the  fruiting  season. 
This  method  of  low  pruning  is  much  em- 
ployed at  Riverside,  in  San  Bernardino 
county,  where  many  of  our  most  progress- 
ive orange  growers  are  to  be  found.  The 
exemplification  there  given  must  certain- 
ly convince  one  of  its  advantages  in  the 
respects  claimed.  For  semi-dwarf  and 
dwarf -budded  orange  trees,  low  pruning 
is  the  system  I  would  recommend.  The 
objection  usually  urged  against  it  is  the 
difliculty  of  working  close  to  the  tree  with 
the  cultivator,  by  reason  of  the  low-hang- 
ing branches.  This  can  be  obviated  by 
choosing  a  cultivator  to  meet  the  special 
requirements.  An  evil  to  be  guarded 
against  is  the  thickening  of  the  top— the 
great  multiplication  of  branches  as  a  re- 
ult  of  the  shortening  process  . 


This  difficulty  may  be  overcome  by  a 
free  use  of  the  knife,  keeping  the  top  open 
enough  to  admit  a  circulation  of  air,  and 
the  tree  will  then  be  as  healthy  as  though 
the  top  were  four  or  five  feet  higher  and 
proportionately  broader.  In  the  case  of 
lemons,  the  theory  has  been  advanced 
that  they  bear  much  better  with  low  prun- 
ing than  with  high,  as  this  manner  of 
growth  must  closely  conform  to  the  natu- 
ral habit  of  the  tree.  It  should  be  borne 
in  mind  that  low  pruning  does  not  con- 
template an  abandonment  of  the  tree  to  its 
own  sweet  will  and  way  in  growing. 
Neither  is  it  allowable  to  leave  suckers 
from  the  roots  or  water  sprouts  from  the 
lower  trunk.  As  close  and  careful  atten- 
tion is  required  in  low  pruning  as  in  high. 

HIGH  PRUNING  —  YOUNG  STOCK.  —  In 
pruning  young  stock  by  the  high  system 
it  is  well  to  make  haste  slowly— t.  e.,  cut 
away  the  lower  branches  only  as  the  tree 
thickens  its  stock  and  throws  its  vitality 
into  the  upper  top.  It  is  conceded  that 
about  the  proper  proportion  for  a  standard 
tree  is  two-thirds  top  and  one-third  stock. 
With  quite  young  trees  the  proportion  of 
top  may  be  greater  than  this  with  good 
advantage.  Lateral  branches  growing  close 
to  the  ground  have  a  tendency  to  thicken 
the  stock  and  make  it  upright  and  self- 
sustaining.  Above  all,  avoid  trimming 
young  trees  up  to  mere  switches,  with  just 
a  tuft  of  leaves  at  the  top.  There  can  be 
no  more  certain  method  of  making  them 
crooked  and  weakly.  As  good  a  general 
rule  as  I  can  lay  down  is,  to  keep  the  tree 
well  proportioned  and  symmetrical  at  all 
stages  of  its  growth.  After  the  first  year 
in  orchard,  the  two-thirds  rule  as  regards 
the  top  may  be  closely  followed.  The 
main  forks  of  the  tree  may  be  established 
at  the  height  of  four  to  six  feet  from  the 
ground  with  seedlings  and  at  three  to  four 
feet  with  budded  varieties.  Remember 
that  the  trunk  of  the  tree  grows  but  very 
little  longitudinally  and  that  the  height  of 
the  top  must  be  regulated  by  cutting  away 
the  lower  branches.  If  a  standard  tree  is 
properly  and  reasonably  pruned,  the  con- 
tour of  the  top  when  viewed  from  a  dis- 
tance will  be  not  unlike  the  almost  perfect 
sphere  of  the  fruit  it  bears. 


ITS  CULTUKE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


61 


PRUNING — IMPLEMENTS  REQUIRED. — A 
pair  of  gloves  to  protect  the  hands  from 
the  thorns;  a  sharp  knife,  a  small  saw,  and 
some  paint  or  wax  to  cover  the  stubs  of 
large  branches;  this  is  the  outfit  for  a 
pruner.  The  pruning  shears  are  much  in 
use,  but  I  do  not  like  them  except  for  clip- 
ping the  ends  of  branches.  When  applied 
to  severing  a  branch  at  the  trunk,  they 
leave  a  stub  which  is  not  to  be  tolerated, 
and  if  this  be  pared  away  by  the  knife  the 
work  is  doubled.  If  one  prunes  his  trees 
from  their  youth  up,  he  grows  in  knowl- 
edge with  them,  so  to  speak,  and  while 
they  are  never  much  at  fault,  he  is  never 
at  great  loss  to  know  how  they  should  be 
treated.  But  to  undertake  the  pruning  of 
older  trees  which  have  been  allowed  to 
grow  half  wild,  and  bring  them  to  a  state 
of  civilization— there's  the  rub.  It  is  vastly 
better,  of  course,  that  they  should  never 
reach  that  vexatious  stage,  but  when  such 
is  the  case  there  is  nothing  for  it  but 
heroic  treatment.  When  Governor  Stone- 
man  purchased  his  estate  in  San  Gabriel, 
fifteen  or  twenty  years  ago,  the  grove  of 
old  oranges  on  the  place  was  almost  un- 
productive. He  sent  his  foreman  into  it 
with  knife  and  saw,  under  instructions  to 
prune  out  half  of  the  tops.  After  perform- 
ing his  task  the  man  reported  to  the  Gov- 
ernor, stating  by  the  way  that  he  though 
he  had  ruined  the  trees.  Governor  Stone- 
man  took  a  look  at  the  orchard  and  sent 
him  back  to  prune  still  further.  The  re- 
sult was  that  the  next  year  there  was  a  fine 
crop  of  oranges. 

PRUNING-  YOUNG  TREES.— The  best  plan 
is  to  go  over  them  quite  frequently — as 
much  as  three  or  four  times  a  year— and 
prune  lightly  each  time. 

TIME  OF  PRUNING. — Whenever  the  tree 
is  in  a  dormant  condition  it  may  be  pruned 
advantageously.  December  is  a  popular 
time  for  this  work;  also  late  in  the  spring 
before  the  heavy  July  -  August  growth 
commences,  and  just  following  the  gather- 
ing of  the  oranges. 

THUMB  PRUNING.— This  consists  of  rub- 
bing off  with  thumb  or  finger  shoots  be- 
fore they  form  any  woody  fiber.  The 
practice  is  quite  allowable,  and  indeed  to 
be  commended  under  certain  restrictions. 
On  general  principles,  it  conduces  more  to 
the  welfare  of  the  tree  to  stop  an  undesir- 


able limb  before  it  has  made  much  growth 
than  to  let  it  grow  on  only  to  be  sacrificed 
at  last  with  greater  shock  and  loss  of  vital- 
ity to  the  tree.  But  I  would  advise  great 
conservatism  in  pruning  young  trees  just 
starting.  This  is  a  critical  time  with  the 
tree  and  it  needs  a  breathing  surface.  If 
the  leaves  which  it  throws  out  for  this 
purpose  should  happen  to  be  in  the  wrong 
place,  it  is  often  better  to  leave  them  until 
the  tree  gets  it  breath,  i.  e.,  hardens  its 
new  growth  and  makes  other  leaves  to 
elaborate  its  sap.  Anything  approaching 
a  general  pruning  of  an  orange  tree  while 
making  new  growth  should  be  avoided,  as 
the  operation  is  likely  to  check  all  further 
growth  for  that  period  and  may  stunt  the 
tree. 

PRUNING  OLDER  TREES. —  The  novice 
looking  at  a  neglected  tree,  with  its  tangle 
of  branches,  is  dumbfounded  with  the  task 
of  pruning.  Let  him  but  go  at  the  work 
systematically,  however,  and  he  will  find 
the  plan  of  the  mighty  maze. 

A  FEW  RULES  FOR  PRUNING.— 1st.  Be- 
gin at  the  ground  and  cut  away  all  suckers 
growing  from  the  crown  of  the  roots.  Dig, 
if  necessary,  to  the  place  where  the  sucker 
issues  from  the  root  and  cut  away  the  little 
protuberance  from  which  the  sprout  grows . 

2d.  Cut  away  all  water-sprouts  growing 
from  the  trunk  of  the  tree.  Remove  the 
knots  or  little  protuberances  here  also, 
paring  smooth  with  the  trunk. 

3d.  Work  along  the  trunk  into  the  top  of 
the  tree,  and  cut  away  all  small,  dwarfed 
branches  which  have  neither  vitality  to 
make  a  large  growth  nor  room  to  make 
it  in. 

4th.  Lop  off  such  main  branches  as 
throw  the  top  out  of  equilibrium  or  de- 
stroy its  symmetry. 

5th.  Cut  away  all  minor  branches  that 
are  superfluous.  Consider  a  branch  super- 
fluous (a)  when  it  crosses  another  or  con- 
flicts with  another  in  any  way;  (6)  when 
it  grows  directly  above  another,  and  would 
at  some  future  time,  conflict  it;  (c)  when 
there  are  parallel  branches  too  close  to- 
gether, a  part  must  be  taken  away;  (d) 
when  a  number  of  branches  have  put  out 
from  the  end  of  a  shortened  limb,  one, 
two  or  three  only  should  be  left. 

Oth.  Having  thinned  the  top  sufficiently 


62 


THE  OKANGE, 


from  within,  survey  it  externally  and  lop 
off  the  ends  of  such  branches  as  destroy 
the  regularity  of  outline. 

A  tree  thus  thinned  out  admits  a  free 
circulation  of  air,  which  is  as  good  in  a 
sanitary  point  of  yiew  as  fresh  air  for  an 
individual.  The  tree  is  then  able  to  cope 
with  its  enemy  the  scale  and  smut,  and  its 
fruit  is  cleaner,  larger  and  better  therefor. 

HINTS  ABOUT  THE  WORK.— In  cutting  a 
limb  of  good  size,  the  neatest  method  is  to 
saw  it  from  below,  raising  the  limb  gradu- 
ally so  that  it  shall  not  pinch  the  saw.  In 
this  way  a  smooth  cut  may  be  made  close 
to  the  body  of  the  tree  and  there  is  no  dan- 


ger that  the  limb  in  falling  may  strip  off  a 
portion  of  bark  from  the  trunk.  If  the 
limb  must  be  sawed  from  above,  first  cut 
the  bark  below  to  avoid  the  tearing  away 
referred  to. 

Do  not  leave  a  stub  of  a  limb  protruding 
from  the  trunk  or  a  main  branch.  Cut 
smooth  and  close  up  in  order  that  the  bark 
may  readily  close  over  the  wound. 

In  cases  where  limbs  of  half  an  inch  or 
more  in  diameter  are  sawed,  it  is  a  good 
plan  to  daub  the  cut  surface  with  paint  or 
grafting  wax  to  prevent  it  from  drying 
out  and  checking. 


CHAPTER  XVII 


FERTILIZING. 


In  one  respect  the  orange  growers  of 
California  are  behind  the  times.  They 
cultivate  thoroughly,  irrigate  scientifically 
and  appreciate  the  value  of  good  pruning; 
they  know  the  book  of  insect  pests  from 
Genesis  to  Exodus;  they  grow  the  best 
fruit  of  the  best  varieties  known;  thej' 
gather  freely  and  in  riches  increase  and 
multiply,  but  they  do  not  replenish  the  earth. 
By  this  single  dereliction  they  approve 
themselves  short-sighted,  improvident  — 
gathering  for  themselves  to  impoverish 
their  children;  building  for  a  day,  not  for 
all  time. 

There  are  old  orange  groves  in  Los  An- 
geles county  that  scarcely  pay  the  cost  of 
cultivation; — trees  in  a  semi-dormant  con- 
dition the  .greater  part  of  the  time,  with 
leaves  of  a  sickly  yellow  color  and  fruit 
small,  leathery  of  pulp  and  lacking  in 
flavor.  These  trees  have  been  undergoing 
a  process  of  starvation  for  ten,  fifteen  or 
twenty  years.  It  is  a  wonder  that  they 
have  maintained  the  unequal  struggle  so 
long.  Indeed,  had  it  not  been  for  the  de- 
gree of  fertilization  which  comes  from  the 
application  of  water  in  repeated  irrigations 
they  would  probably  have  succumbed 
long  ago.  It  is  not  in  reason  that  any  soil 
can  sustain  the  continual  demand  made 
upon  it  for  the  formation  of  a  larger  tree 


and  the  annual  production  of  a  crop  of 
fruit  without  becoming  exhausted.  Groves 
in  this  impoverished  condition  need  to  be 
renovated,  first  by  a  heavy  pruning  of  the 
trees,  and  second  by  a  thorough  renewal 
of  the  soil.  With  this  stimulus  the  trees 
will  make  a  new  start  and  regain  their 
former  productiveness. 

In  Florida,  and  in  most  other  countries 
where  orange  growing  is  prosecuted  as  a 
scientific  industry,  much  attention  is  paid 
to  fertilizing.  Rev.  T.  W.  Moore,  in  his 
work  on  orange  culture  in  Florida,  says: 

"No  crop  feeds  more  ravenously  than 
the  orange,  and  none  will  convert  so  large 
an  amount  of  suitable  fertilizers  into  fruit 
so  profitably.  Much  of  our  Florida  laud 
will  produce  and  sustain  fine  trees  for  a 
few  years  without  the  aid  of  manure;  but 
after  some  years  of  fruiting  the  leaves  will 
begin  to  turn  yellow,  indicating  a  defici- 
ency in  the  soil."  He  then  discusses  the 
various  fertilizers  in  use,  naming  the  com- 
mercial compounds  of  ground  bone,  pot- 
ash and  sulphuric  acid,  Peruvian  guano, 
land  plaster,  green  crops  turned  under, 
stable  manure,  and  swamp  muck. 

In  California  not  one  of  these  fertilizers 
is  in  use,  unless  it  be  stable  manure  in 
exceptional  instances.  The  reason  that 
our  fruit  growers  have  paid  so  little  atten- 


ITS  CULTUKE  IN  CALLFOKNIA. 


63 


tion  to  this  subject  is  mainly  due,  I  think, 
to  their  unwitting  renewal  of  the  soil  by 
irrigation,  making  it  possible  for  trees  thus 
sustained  to  flourish  and  bear  good  crops 
for  a  number  of  years.  No  attention  was 
paid  to  the  matter  of  fertilizing  per  sc  and 
so  cultivators  thought,  if  they  thought  at 
all  on  the  subject,  that  their  trees  were 
doing  well  enough  without  manures  and 
would  never  require  them.  Had  the  re- 
newal of  the  soil  been  a  more  marked 
necessity  it  would  have  elicited  more  at- 
tention. 

FERTILIZATION  BY  WATER. — Irrigation 
fertilizes  the  soil  in  two  ways: 

1st.  By  the  mechanical  action  of  the 
water,  which  takes  up  the  fine  particles  of 
vegetable  matter  in  passing  along  the 
ditches  and  deposits  them  as  a  silt  in  the 
basins  about  the  trees. 

2d.  By  the  chemical  elements  contained 
in  the  water  itself. 

A  propos  of  this  subject  I  here  present 
an  analysis  of  the  water  of  the  Los  An- 
geles river,  made  by  Prof.  E.  W.  Hilgard, 
of  the  University  of  California: 

Total  residue  of  sample  tested  17.53 
grains  per  gallon,  of  which  8.37  grains 
consisted  of  common  Glauber's  salts,  etc., 
and  9.16  grains  carbonate  of  lime,  magne- 
sia and  silica.  The  detailed  analysis  is  as 
follows: 

Chloride  of  sodium  (common  salt)... 
Sulphate  of  sodium  (Glauber's  salts).. 

Carbonate  of  lime 

Carbonate  of  magnesia 

Silica 

Sulphate  of  lime 

Phosphate  of  lime 

Iron  and  magnesia  carbonates 

Alumina 

17.530 

The  water  of  the  Los  Angeles  river  is 
primarily  derived  from  the  mountains, 
the  same  as  nearly  all  of  the  irrigating 
water  used  in  Southern  California,  and 
while  there  may  be  a  great  variation  in 
the  chemical  constituents  of  different 
streams  and  springs  it  is  probable  that  all 
are  more  or  less  charged  with  fertilizing 
elements. 

THE  FERTILIZING  TO  BE  CONSIDERED  IN 
IRRIGATION.— Orange  growers,  if  they  are 
wise,  will  consider  the  fertilizing  effect  of 
water  in  irrigation  and  strive  to  make  the 
most  of  it.  In  this  connection  I  wish  to 


caution  them  against  the  plan  somewhat 
in  vogue  of  allowing  water  to  run  in 
channels  along  a  row  of  trees,  the  portion 
not  absorbed  flowing  away  as  waste.  By 
this  method  the  mechanical  fertilization 
previously  referred  to,  is  entirely  lost 
More  than  this,  the  very  soil  about  the 
trees  is  robbed  of  some  of  its  best  ele- 
ments, all  being  carried  away  to  enrich 
some  adjoining  field,  or  mayhap,  the 
roadside.  When  we  consider  irrigation  in 
this  light,  the  basin  method  is  by  far  the 
more  preferable. 

WATER  FERTILIZATION  NOT  SUFFICIENT. 
—While  I  am  disposed  to  allow  full  meas- 
ure of  importance  to  the  fertilizing  which 
comes  from  irrigation,  I  would  enjoin  the 
fact  that  this  alone  is  not  sufficient.  The 
old  groves  alluded  to,  which  have  ex- 
hausted their  partially  renovated  soils,  are 
proof  of  this  theory. 

SUBSTANTIAL  FERTILIZERS  REQUIRED.— 
A  full  grown  orange  tree  maintains  a 
wealth  of  foliage,  forms  new  wood  and 
leaves  five  or  six  times  annually  and  pro- 
duces from  one  to  five  thousand  oranges. 
The  organism  from  which  all  this  is  re- 
quired deserves  good  food  and  plenty  of  it. 

MANURES  AT  HAND.— Nearly  every  fruit 
grower  has  at  hand  the  means  of  fertilizing 
his  orchard  properly  if  he  will  only  de- 
vote sufficient  attention  to  the  subject. 
Instead  of  allowing  the  refuse  of  his  barn 
yard  to  dry  out  and  burn  out  through  the 
long  summer  and  to  leach  away  in  winter, 
he  should  have  it  preserved  and  applied 
to  the  orchard  ground. 

A  COMPOST  HEAP.— A  good  way  is  to 
establish  a  compost  heap  at  some  place 
convenient  for  wetting  down  during  the 
summer.  A  water-tight  vat,  built  in  the 
ground  or  slightly  depressed  is  best,  but  a 
mere  excavation  where  the  eartli  is  com- 
pact will  suffice.  Into  this  let  all  the  barn 
yard  refuse  be  thrown,  together  with  all 
the  bones  that  are  available,  and  all  the 
ashes  from  the  house.  In  lieu  of  a  plenti- 
ful supply  of  ashes  muriate  of  potash  may 
be  used,  which  will  thoroughly  decompose 
the  bones.  Let  the  compost  heap  be  wet 
occasionally  to  facilitate  decomposition, 
and  if  too  much  heat  is  generated  let  the 
mass  be  forked  over.  In  this  way  a  large 
quantity  of  the  best  fertilizing  matter  may 


64 


THE  OBANGE, 


be  accumulated  in  the  course  of  a  year, 
and  the  cost  will  be  merely  nominal. 

APPLYING  THE  MANURE.— As  soon  as 
the  winter  rains  are  well  started  the  ma- 
nure may  be  applied  to  the  orchard.  Care 
should  be  taken  not  to  heap  it  about  the 
bodies  of  the  trees.  It  is  of  very  little  use 
there  in  any  event,  and  may  do  harm.  It 
should  be  spread  over  the  ground  as  far 
as  the  lateral  roots  extend  and,  with  large 
trees,  the  whole  surface  of  the  ground 
may  be  covered  with  advantage.  Turn  it 
in  with  a  plow,  and  the  work  is  done.  The 
rains  will  carry  the  soluble  elements  down 
into  the  earth,  making  them  available  for 
the  roots,  and  the  fibrous  matter  will  be 
incorporated  with  the  surface  soil  to  its 
great  benefit.  Stiff  soils  are  thus  rendered 
more  friable,  and  sandy  soils  more  loamy. 


Both  will  be  susceptible  to  finer  tilth  and 
will  retain  moisture  the  better  therefor. 

ARTIFICIAL  FERTILIZERS.— When  Cali- 
fornia orange  growers  shall  have  utilized 
the  cheap  fertilizers  at  hand,  which  now 
go  to  waste,  and  then  feel  the  necessity 
for  more  concentrated  manures,  it  will  be 
time  to  talk  to  them  about  the  manufac- 
tured article.  My  object  at  present  is  to 
urge  upon  them  the  subject  of  fertilizing 
in  the  main.  If  they  do  it  at  all  they  will 
do  it  well.  I  believe  the  home-made  com- 
post heap,  as  outlined  above,  would  fur- 
nish all  that  is  required  in  the  way  of  fer- 
tilizers at  a  tithe  of  the  expense  of  the 
commercial  compounds. 

Let  the  California  orange  grower  renew 
his  soil  in  some  way,  and  the  sooner  he 
begins  this  task  the  better. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


ENEMIES  OF  THE  ORANGE  TREE. 


The  orange  tree  has  its  enemies; — so 
have  we  all.  Probably  the  horde  of  orange 
tree  pests  is  no  more  numerous  or  impla- 
cable than  that  which  preys  upon  our 
other  domestic  trees;  but  when  it  comes  to 
numbering  and  cataloguing  them — aye, 
or  fighting  them  either — they  seem  for- 
midable enough.  It  is  this  numbering  and 
cataloguing  and  studying  their  habits 
which  painstaking  men  have  performed 
for  us  that  has  placed  within  our  hands 
the  weapons  for  their  destruction.  Let 
nobody  be  appalled  by  the  array  of  orange- 
tree  pests  presented  in  these  and  subse- 
quent pages;  they  do  not  all  attack  at 
once,  and  by  taking  them  in  detail  and 
following  prescribed  methods,  every  one 
of  them  can  be  vanquished. 

Tin-:  GOPHER. — This  is  a  .little  animal 
resembling  a  rat;  somewhat  more  com- 
pactly built  and  with  shovel  teeth  and  a 
stubby  tail.  He  burrows  in  the  ground 
and  is  almost  a  universal  pest  in  Califor- 
nia. IIo  is  especially. destructive  with 
orange  trees  because  he  attacks  the  roots, 
many  times  doing  the  utmost  damage 
without  giving  evidence  upon  the  surface 
that  he  is  at  work.  The  nr.st  indication, 


perhaps,  is  the  wilting  of  the  leaves,  and 
then,  when  one  seeks  the  cause,  the  tree 
topples  over,  the  main  root  having  been 
eaten  entirely  away.  In  attacking  large 
trees  the  gopher's  method  is  to  girdle  the 
main  stock  just  below  the  surface  and  then 
destroy  the  lateral  roots  by  peeling  away 
the  bark. 

How  TO  FIGHT  HIM.— The  way  to  serve 
the  gopher  is  to  carry  the  war  into  Africa, 
and  fight  a  battle  of  extermination.  Do 
not  wait  for  him  to  attack  a  tree.  As  soon 
as  you  discover  his  mound  of  earth  thrown 
up  anywhere  in  the  orchard,  or  near  it, 
open  hostilities. 

POISON.— I  have  found  crystals  of  strych- 
nine one  of  the  handiest  and  surest  means 
of  giving  the  gopher  his  quietus.  I  pro- 
vide myself  with  a  little  bottle  or  box  of 
poisoned  raisins  which  I  keep  constantly 
in  my  pocket  while  about  the  farm.  Then, 
upon  discovering  a  gopher  mound  I  dig 
it  away  and  work  down  until  the  ho\e  is 
exposed.  A  couple  of  the  raisins  ;ir<> 
thrown  in  as  far  as  they  will  go  and  the 
gopher  is  left  to  his  fate.  Sometimes, 
hower,  he  resists  temptation  to  the  ex- 
tent of  filling  the  hole  and  throwing  the 


ITS  CULTUBE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


65 


raisins  up  with  the  dirt.  Then  it  is  nec- 
essary to  dig  and  try  it  again.  If  he  re- 
fuses the  raisin  bait  entirely,  try  him  with 
a  wedge  of  poisoned  watermelon,  or  a 
piece  of  carrot  or  turnip  or  sweet  potato. 
Never  give  up  until  you  are  sure  that  the 
gopher  is  dead.  If  allowed  to  remain  he 
will  surely  do  some  mischief  and,  what 
is  worse,  he  will  soon  have  a  family  to 
join  him  in  his  marauding.  After  pois- 
oning a  hole,  you  will  generally  find  it 
filled  up,  but  if  there  are  no  after  evi- 
dences of  work  in  that  vicinity  you  may 
conclude  that  the  poison  has  been  effec- 
tive. As  previously  remarked,  strych- 
nine is  the  best  destroyer.  Pulverize  the 
crystals  snd  insert  only  a  little  of  the  pow- 
der in  the  bait.  Arsenic  will  not  serve  at 
all;  the  gopher  fattens  on  it. 

TRAPS. — Several  patterns  of  gopher  traps 
are  in  use,  the  best  of  which  are  skeleton 
claws,  which  are  inserted  in  the  hole  and 
close  with  a  spring  upon  the  gopher  when 
he  pushes  the  trigger.  In  setting  them  it 
is  best  to  dig  down  to  the  main  runaway 
and  place  the  trap  as  nearly  on  a  level  as 
possible.  Then  cover  the  hole  with  some- 
thing to  exclude  the  light.  The  most  suc- 
cessful trap  I  have  eyer  found  is  called 
the  Gushing,  and  is  constructed  of  wire, 
with  a  sheet-iron  trigger.  It  has  ua  very 
taking  way  "  with  the  gophers. 

SQUIRRELS. — Another  burrowing  pest  is 
the  ground  squirrel.  He  has  his  nest  be- 
low ground  and  a  hole  for  entrance  and 
exit  much  larger  than  the  gopher  hole, 
which  he  always  leaves  open.  He  does 
not  attack  the  roots  of  a  tree  unless  they 
happen  to  be  in  his  way  while  tunneling. 
The  damage  which  he  does  the  orange 
tree  is  in  gnawing  the  bark  of  the  trunk. 

EXTERMINATORS.— Squirrels  are  exter- 
minated by  poison  and  by  fumigations 
with  apparatus  gotten  up  for  the  purpose 
of  driving  bi-sulphide  or  carbon  gas  or 
brimstone  smoke  into  their  holes.  Wrap- 
ping or  whitewashing  the  trees,  as  sug- 
gested in  the  chapter  on  planting,  is  a 
good  means  of  protection  against  squir- 
rels. These  pests  are  by  no  means  so  uni- 
versal as  gophers  and  are  more  easily  dis- 
posed of. 

RABBITS.— Both  the  Jack  and  the  "Cot- 
ton Tail"  rabbit  are  destructive  enemies 
to  the  orange  tree,  gnawing  the  bark  as 


high  as  they  can  reach.  Wrapping  or 
whitewashing  the  trunk  is  a  protection 
against  them.  Some  people  suspend  bits 
of  bright  tin  in  their  trees,  the  glint  of 
which  in  either  sunlight  or  moonlight, 
frightens  the  depredators  away.  Another 
method  is  to  smear  the  trunks  with  dilut- 
ed blood.  The  rabbit  has  a  fine  sense  of 
smell,  and  this  offense  to  his  olfactories 
keeps  him  awray.  Kabbits  are  disposed  of 
with  the  shot  gun  with  double  advantage, 
if  one  has  time  to  hunt  them.  Otherwise 
poison  may  be  used  or  the  services  of  a 
good  dog  or  cat  invoked.  When  one  starts 
an  orchard  in  a  comparatively  new  and 
wild  region,  all  measures  of  protection 
seem  ineffectual  except  a  rabbit-tight 
fence. 

GRASSHOPPERS.— In  newly  settled  local- 
ities grasshoppers  are  apt  to  prove  trou- 
blesome for  a  number  of  years,  or  until 
all  the  contiguous  lands  are  brought  under 
cultivation.  Plowing  the  ground  seems 
to  kill  their  eggs  and  put  an  end  to  the 
nuisance.  When  grasshoppers  preyail  to- 
a  considerable  extent  they  destroy  young 
orange  trees  by  denuding  them  of  leaves 
and  even  stripping  the  bark  from  the  ten- 
der shoots.  The  best  protection  to  small 
trees  is  to  wrap  the  stocks  with  paper  or 
cloth  and  enclose  the  top  in  a  grain  bag  or 
other  covering.  Chickens  are  of  great 
service  in  making  war  upon  grasshoppers^ 
I  have  colonized  my  flocks  in  the  orange 
orchard  with  the  most  satisfactory  results. 
to  the  chickens  and  the  trees. 

SCALE  INSECTS.— The  most  formidable 
enemies,  after  all,  are  the  scale  insects; 
probably  because  they  are  the  most  in- 
significant. They  belong  to  a  low  order 
of  animal  life  known  as  coccidae.  I  shall 
not  here  attempt  a  techinal  description  of 
the  scale  insects,  but  will  rather  refer  the 
reader  to  the  scientific  discussion  of  the 
subject  taken  fron  the  work  of  Hon. 
Matthew  Cooke  and  appearing  as  an  ap- 
pendix to  this  work.  I  cannot  too  highly 
commend  the  efforts  of  Mr.  Cooke  in  be- 
half of  the  fruit  growers  of  our  State. 
They  owe  him  a  debt  of  gratitude  which 
must  needs  be  paid  in  installments  by 
successive  generations.  For  the  fullest 
information  relative  to  insects  injurious  to 
all  tree  and  plant  life  I  lake  pleasure  in 


66 


THE  OEANGE; 


referring  my  readers  to  Mr.  Cooke's 
work.* 

THE  BLACK  SCALE.— This  is  the  most 
common,  and  is  considered  the  least  dan- 
gerous of  the  scale  family.  It  may  exist 
in  a  tree  a  long  time  without  destroying  it, 
but  we  may  be  sure  the  effect  is  constant- 
ly deleterious.  The  scale  appears  in  all 
tints  from  a  whity  yellow  of  the  newly- 
hatched  to  a  brown  of  middle  age  and 
black  in  maturity,  and  in  form  is  a  little 
blister  adhering  to  leaf,  stem  or  stock.  It 
does  not  attach  itself  to  the  fruit.  Trees 
thus  infested  should  be  thoroughly 
pruned  and  washed  with  a  solution  of 
whale-oil  soap  as  directed  in  the  appendix. 

FUNGUS,  OR  SMUT.— This  is  an  attend- 
ant of  the  black  scale.  Scientific  investi- 
gation has  shown  that  the  scale  excretes  a 
gummy  substance  called  honey-dew, 
which,  in  falling,  attaches  to  the  upper 
surfaces  of  leaves,  twigs  and  fruit.  This 
gum  holds  the  dust  that  chances  to  fall 
upon  the  surfaces  covered  by  it,  and  the 
mass  generates  a  fungus  growth  termed 
back  smut.  This  smut,  although  seeming 
to  do  no  damage  to  the  tree  other  than  to 
render  it  unsightly,  must  retard  its  growth 
by  obstructing  the  stomata  or  air-breath- 
ing surfaces  of  leaves  and  branches.  It 
also  renders  the  fruit  unsalable,  or  nearly 
so.  Neither  scale  nor  smut  should  be  tol- 
erated in  an  orchard.  The  whale-oil  soap 
solution  extirpates  both. 

THE  RED  SCALE.— This  is  similar  to  the 


black  scale,  except  that  it  is  somewhat 
smaller  and  of  a  reddish  color.  It  adheres 
only  to  the  under  side  of  leaves  and  to  the 
fruit,  and  avoids  the  limbs  and  trunk. 
The  red  scale  is  more  dangerous  than  the 
black  and,  if  unmolested,  will  utterly  de- 
stroy an  orchard  in  a  few  years.  For 
treatment  see  Appendix. 

THE  WHITE  on  COTTONY  CUSHION 
SCALE. — This  approaches  more  nearly  to  a 
distinct  animal  than  either  of  the  other 
scales  and  is  the  most  dangerous  of  the 
three.  For  full  description  and  manner 
of  treatment  see  Appendix. 

GUM  DISEASE.— Lemon  trees  especially 
and  orange  trees  occasionally,  are  subject 
to  gum  disease,  an  affection  of  the  bark 
close  to  the  ground.  This  is  caused  by  in- 
judiciuos  irrigation.  The  bark  splits  and 
a  gum  exudes.  If  unchecked,  the  disease 
encircles  the  tree  and  kills  it.  The  best 
treatment  upon  discovering  the  first  symp- 
toms of  gum  disease  is  to  cut  away  the 
affected  part  and  daub  the  wound  with 
paint,  wax  or  tar.  In  irrigating  thereafter 
do  not  allow  the  water  to  touch  the  body 
of  the  tree  and  be  sure  that  the  soil  is  well 
stirred  after  each  irrigation. 

"Die  Back"  and  many  of  the  other  mal- 
adies to  which  the  orange  trees  of  Florida 
and  some  other  lands  are  subject  are 
wholly  unknown  in  this  country. 

*NOTE.— Injurious  Insects  of  the  Orchard,  Vine- 
yard, etc.,  by  Matthew  Cooke,  late  Chief  Executive 
Horticultural  Officer  of  California.  Sacramento: 
H.  8.  Crocker  &  Co. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

WASHING  TREES. 

THE    YOUNO    ORCHARD.  —  When     the       WASHING  SOVEREIGN  AND  IMPERATIVE. 
young  trees  are  planted  in  orchard  it  is  a    —For  older  tw'-  - 
good  plan  to  give  th«™  °  *u~ 


..r..wu.w*  giving  the  trees  a 
washing  once  or  twice  a  year  thereafter  it 
will  greatly  promote  their  vigor  and  in- 
sure them  against  attack  by  the  scale  in" 
sect.  With  these  pests  of  the  orange  treo 
the  ounce  of  prevention  is  a  hundred 
times  the  easiest  and  best. 


.„  ~~  ..  -i-uy,  productive  and  long  lived, 
must  be  washed. 

THE  SOLUTION  in  common  use  for  this 
purpose  is  made  of  whale-oil  or  some  oth- 
er cheap  and  strong  soap.  For  my  use  I 
have  found  the  addition  of  a  little  con- 
centrated lye  most  efficacious.  The 
strength  of  the  solution  needs  to  be  varied 


ITS  CULTUKE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


67 


to  suit  requirements.  The  strongest  is 
needed  in  treating  obstinate  cases  of  scale. 
For  simply  washing  trees  to  cleanse  them, 
and  as  a  measure  of  prevention  I  recom- 
mend the  following : 

A  SIMPLE  WASH.— Heat  the  water  al- 
most to  the  boiling  point  and  dissolve  in 
it  sufficient  concentrated  lye  to  make  it 
slippery  between  the  ringers.  Then  add 
whale-oil  soap,  a  quarter  pound  to  the 
gallon.  The  solution  may  be  applied  to 
the  trees  hot  without  danger  of  injuring 
them. 

STRONGER  SOLUTIONS.  —  For  stronger 
washes,  and  those  of  various  kinds,  such 
as  tobacco  mixture,  coal  oil  emulsion,  etc., 
see  the  recipes  of  Matthew  Cooke  in  the 
Appendix  to  this  work. 

METHOD  OF  APPLICATION.— A  broom  or 
a  scrubbing  brush  is  serviceable  for  wash- 
ing the  stock  and  main  limbs  of  the  tree. 
In  treating  the  tops,  the  solution  may  be 
"switched"  in  with  a  broom  or  brush  or 
sprayed  with  a  hand  sprinkler.  The 
switching  process  is  available  only  with 
small  trees  when  the  tops  are  well  thinned 
out.  For  those  of  larger  growth  a  hand 
sprinkler,  such  as  shown  in  the  accom- 
panying illustration,  is  used: 


In  treating  an  orchard  of  full  grown 
seedlings,  these  apparatus  are  in  turn,  in- 
adequate, and  to  avoid  tediousness,  resort 
must  be  had  to  a  force  pump  like  that 
shown  in  Fig.  2. 


FIG.   1— THE   SPRAYER. 


FIG.   2 — THE  FORCE   PUMP. 

THE  SPRAYER.— Fig.  1  illustrates  a  hand 
sprayer  with  the  nozzle  attached  to  the 
piston:  The  bucket  containing  the  solu- 
tion is  placed  on  the  ground  and  the  ap- 
paratus worked  with  both  hands.  This 
will  throw  a  rose-spray  to  the  heighth  of 
twelve  or  fifteen  feet,  or  a  solid  stream 
twenty  feet. 

The  pump  shown  in  Fig  2  is  known  as 
the  Excelsior  No.  1.  It  is  generally 
mounted  on  a  barrel  containing  the  solu- 
tion, and  the  whole  apparatus  is  hauled 
about  the  orchard  in  a  wagon.  The  ad- 
vantage of  this  pump  is  that,  being  dou- 
ble acting,  it  throws  a  continuous  stream. 
Double  hose  may  be  attached,  thus  giving 
two  streams  simultaneously.  The  wash 
is  applied  through  a  three-quarter  inch 
hose  twelve  or  fifteen  feet  long  with  a  noz- 
zle of  ordinary  iron  pipe  eight  or  ten  feet 
long,  which  can  be  pushed  well  into  the 
top  of  the  tree  by  the  operator.  The 
spray  is  formed  by  closing  the  end  of  the 
pipe  excepting  only  a  thin  slit.  Four  men 
make  up  the  spraying  party: — one  to 
drive  the  team,  one  to  work  the  pump  and 
two  to  hold  the  nozzles.  With  this  force 
at  work  an  orchard  is  soon  gone  over. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

WORKING,  WATCHING  AND  WAITING. 


:  But  the  waiting  time,  my  brothers,  is  the  hardest 
time  of  all." 
A  YEAR  OR  Two  LOST.— As  stated  in  a 


preceding  chapter,  the  orange  tree  loses  a 
year's  growth  in  trans-planting.  Under 
the  most  favorable  circumstances  it  is  not 


THE  ORANGE; 


until  the  second  year  in  orchard  that  the 
tree  regains  its  normal  vigor.  If  in  the 
meantime  any  special  causes  have  inter- 
vened to  set  it  back,  such  as  the  loss  or 
partial  loss  of  its  leaves  by  grasshoppers, 
or  the  gnawing  of  its  roots  or  stock  by 
vermin,  or  injury  by  frost— any  or  all  of 
which  are  liable  to  occur — the  tree  may 
not  get  a  good  start  before  the  beginning 
of  the  third  year  after  planting.  If  it  do 
not  show  itself  in  a  thrifty  growing  con- 
dition by  that  time,  better  dig  it  up  and 
throw  it  away.  I  would  not  wait  that 
long  with  a  tree  that  gave  earlier  evidences 
of  being  stunted. 

WHEN  BUDDED  TREES  YIELD.— But  if 
good  budded  trees  are  planted  and  thrive 
well  from  the  start,  the  third  year  in  or- 
chard they  ought  to  yield  a  little  fruit,  by 
way  of  sample.  The  fourth  year  they 
will  produce  more,  but  not  enough  to 
bring  much  revenue.  At  the  end  of  the 
fifth  year  there  should  be  quite  a  fine  crop. 
If  the  trees  have  been  retarded  in  any 
way  the  fruiting  may  be  a  year  later. 
Accordingly,  the  man  who  plants  an  or- 
chard of  budded  oranges,  must  expect  to 
wait  from  five  to  six  years  for  his  first 
substantial  proceeds. 

WHEN  SEEDLINGS  YIELD. — With  seed- 
ling trees  one  must  wait  nine  or  ten  years. 

A  LONG  WAIT. — Five  years  is  a  long 
time;  ten  years  a  great  deal  longer.  If  a 
man  is  possessed  of  a  plethoric  purse  he 
can  abide  the  issue,  with  equanimity;  but 
for  one  who  is  dependant  for  a  living  up- 
on his  own  energies  this  hiatus  is  a  most 
serious  matter.  It  is  a  matter  which  one 
should  weigh  well  and  provide  against 
before  embarking  in  the  enterprise.  Not 
only  must  the  family  have  a  living,  but 
there  is  a  continual  demand  for  the  ex- 
penditure of  money  or  its  equivalent- 
energy— in  caring  for  the  orchard. 

TIDING  OVER.— Many  and  divers  ways 
are  resorted  to  by  men  of  limited  re- 
sources to  tide  over  this  period  of  waiting. 
The  mechanic  finds  work  at  his  trade  for 
a  part  of  each  year;  the  teacher  returns  to 
teaching,  and  the  professional  man  to  his 
practice.  If  the  previous  vacation  was 
that  of  a  farmer  the  orchardist  can  gener- 
ally find  work  to  do  near  at  home  in  car- 
ing for  the  places  of  others  or  in  general 
farm  labor.  Some  may  be  able  to  pay 


their  way  as  they  go  from  their  own 
places.  Such  are  to  be  envied  most  of  all. 
It  often  happens,  however,  that  the  fruit 
farm  par  excellence  is  not  well  adapted  to 
raising  general  produce.  This  is  the  case 
with  many  of  the  mesa  locations. 

HELPS.— But  with  all  farms  established 
on  a  right  basis  there  are  helps  to  the  liv- 
ing which  prove  most  valuable  at  this  pe- 
riod. The  cow  is  one  of  these  adjuncts  ; 
chickens  another ;  the  vegetable  garden 
a  third.  If  a  man  is  provident  he  can 
have  his  patch  of  alfalfa  and  his  fodder 
growing  in  odd  strips  and  corners  of  the 
place,  thereby  providing,  without  any 
outlay  of  cash,  enough  feed  for  his  cow 
and  some  to  help  along  with  the  support 
of  the  other  animals.  Chickens,  as  an 
auxiliary,  under  the  charge  of  the  gentle 
and  painstaking  housewife,  are  not  to  be 
despised ;  but  I  warn  the  novice  against 
placing  too  much  dependence  on  the 
chicken  business  as  a  principal  means  of 
livelihood.  Heretofore  some  people,  prin- 
cipally dealers  in  fancy  stock,  have  in- 
dulged in  a  good  deal  of  hyperbole  re- 
garding the  profits  of  the  poultry  yard, 
and  some  other  people  have  believed 
them  and  have  been  badly  disappointed. 

ECONOMY  WINS.— The  thrifty  man,  aid- 
ed by  his  helpmeet,  can  devise  many 
ways  to  cut  down  expenses  and  produce  a 
little  revenue  pending  the  issue  of  the 
main  horticultural  venture;  and  those  who 
address  themselves  earnestly  to  the  task, 
and  keep  clear  of  debt,  generally  work 
through  and  find  themselves  on  the  com- 
fortable side  of  independence  in  a  few 
years. 

DIVERSIFIED  PLANTING.— Most  people 
who  improve  small  places  diversify  their 
planting,  i.  e.  set  a  portion  of  the  farm  in 
deciduous  fruits  and  a  portion  in  grape- 
vines ;  and  some  devote  considerable  space 
to  small  fruits.  These  come  into  bearing 
at  two  to  four  years  and  shorten  the  un- 
productive period  correspondingly. 

ADVISABLE  CROPS.— In  this  connection 
it  would  be  proper  to  discuss  the  prodmcts 
that  may  be  grown  in  the  spaces  between 
the  rows  of  young  fruit  trees,  for  the  man 
who  struggles  to  make  ends  meet  almost 
invariably  feels  the  necessity  of  utilizing 
this  ground.  Corn  and  sugar  cane  for 
domestic  use  or  for  fodder,  potatoes,  beets, 


ITS  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


69 


turnips — any  of  the  leguminous  crops — 
may  be  grown  without  detriment  to  the 
trees.  But  I  would  advise  the  planting  of 
not  more  than  two  rows  in  the  space  be- 
tween rows  of  trees.  These  crops  should 
not  come  nearer  than  six  or  eight  feet 
from  the  trees. 

Nursery  stock  and  small  fruits  may  be 
planted  in  the  orchard  if  the  same  rule  of 
not  overcrowding  is  observed. 

CROPS  NOT  ADVISABLE. — All  grain  crops 
—any  crops,  in  fact,  that  preclude  cultiva- 
tion— should  be  avoided  as  they  involve 
great  injury  or  total  destruction  of  the 
trees.  Watermelons  and  pumpkins  are 
undesirable  since  they  cover  much  of  the 
ground  to  the  exclusion  of  the  cultivator, 
and  their  roots  ramify  to  great  distances, 
frequently  drawing  moisture  directly 
from  the  roots  of  the  trees. 

CITRUS  AND  DECIDUOUS  TREES. — Some 
people  adopt  the  plan  of  planting  decidu- 
ous trees  of  early  bearing  habits— like  the 
peach— in  alternate  rows  between  their 
orange  trees.  To  this  end  the  orchard  is 
often  planted  close  together  with  the  in- 
tention of  ultimately  cutting  away  the 
deciduous  trees  when  the  oranges  come 
into  bearing.  My  experience  with  this 


method  has  not  led  me  to  favor  it.  In  the 
first  place  consulting  appearances,  I  do 
not  like  the  intermixture  of  the  two  kinds 
of  trees — citrus  and  deciduous.  Secondly, 
trees  of  different  habits  need  to  be  treated 
differently  in  irrigation,  and  it  is  generally 
an  awkward  matter  to  irrigate  part  of  the 
trees  in  an  orchard  without  watering  all. 
Thirdly,  peach  and  some  other  deciduous 
trees  come  into  bearing  before  the  or- 
anges, it  is  true,  but  the  fact  also  remains 
that  they  are  still  vigorous  trees  when  the 
oranges  begin  to  produce.  In  Southern 
California  the  peach  tree  has  been  known 
to  live  fifty  years.  The  oranges  will  need 
all  of  the  space  in  the  orchard  when  the 
deciduous  trees  are  still  in  their  very 
prime.  It  is  hard  for  one  to  sacrifice  the 
result  of  years  of  toil,  and  hence  too  often 
the  deciduous  trees  are  left  and  the  or- 
anges suffer— all  of  the  trees  surfer  from 
crowding. 

AN  ORANGE  GROVE  PURE  AND  SIMPLE. 
—If  the  orange  grower  is  master  of  the 
situation,  so  that  he  does  not  need  to  raise 
anything  in  his  orchard  but  the  orange 
trees  themselves,  and  can  keep  the  whole 
surface  well  pulverized  and  free  from  ex- 
traneous growth — that  is,  after  all,  the 
best  plan. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

THE  ORANGE  TREE  IN  BEARING. 


EXTRA  CARE.— The  orange  tree  when  it 
begins  to  bear  requires  extra  attention. 
Not  only  should  the  cultivation  be  most 
thorough,  but,  beginning  with  the  time 
when  the  fruit  first  forms,  there  must  be 
more  irrigation  than  formerly,  and  every 
means  must  be  adopted  to  keep  the  tree 
up  to  full  vigor  as  it  assumes  its  new  pro- 
ductive function. 

TENDENCY  TO  OVERBEAR.— The  natural 
tendency  of  the  tree  is  to  overbear;  i.  e., 
to  form  more  fruit  than  it  can  properly 
mature,  or  at  least  so  much  that,  if  ma- 
tured, its  own  vitality  suffers  thereby. 

THINNING  THE  FRUIT.— For  this  reason 
it  is  imperative  that  the  fruit  first  formed 
be  thinned  out  with  no  sparing  hand.  If 
two-thirds  or  three-quarters  of  the  sets 
are  pulled  off  when  they  are  the  size  of  a 
hazelnut,  it  will  be  the  better  for  the  tree. 


How  many  oranges  a  tree  should  be  al- 
lowed to  bear  the  first  season  it  would  be 
impossible  to  say,  as  so  much  depends 
upon  the  size  and  strength  of  the  tree,  but 
I  would  place  the  safe  limit  somewhere 
between  three  and  twenty.  Aim  to  keep 
within  rather  than  to  pass  the  limit  by  a 
single  orange,  and  the  future  well-being 
of  the  tree  will  reward  you  therefor. 
When  a  tree  overbears  at  first  it  is  gener- 
ally stunted,  and  in  such  case  the  original 
yield  mfly  be  its  best  for  a  number  of 
years.  In  some  instances  the  tree  never 
produces  so  good  fruit  afterwards.  The 
second  season  more  liberty  may  be  al- 
lowed in  the  matter  of  production,  but 
both  tree  and  owner  must  still  practice 
self  denial  to  a  degree. 

AFTER  PRODUCTION.— The  second  year 
of  bearing  a  budded  tree  may  be  allowed 


70 


THE  CHANGE; 


to  produce  fro  in  twenty-five  to  fifty  or- 
anges, the  third  year  two  hundred,  and 
thus  increasing  proportionately  until  in 
full  bearing. 

FRUIT  THINNING  AFTERWARDS  DESIR- 
ABLE.—The  careful  grower  will  not  over- 
look the  thinning  of  his  fruit  at  any  age 
of  the  tree.  Thus  only  is  the  finest  qual- 
ity and  a  good  uniformity  of  fruit  to  be 
obtained.  As  the  trees  become  large  the 
task  of  thinning  increases  to  laborious 
proportions,  but  that  is  no  reason  why  it 
should  be  overlooked.  No  greater  over- 
sight is  to  be  charged  to  our  orange  grow- 
ers generally  than  in  their  neglect  to  re- 
press the  over-productive  tendency  of 
their  trees. 

A  SHORT  CUT  IN  THINNING.— An  expe- 
ditious way  of  thinning  the  fruit  adopted 
by  some  growers  is  to  prune  their  trees 
quite  heavily  in  June  or  in  one  of  the  fall 
months  when  in  a  dormant  stage.  This 
finds  the  fruit  newly  set  or  half  formed, 
and  a  fair  proportion  of  it  is  removed  with 
the  severed  limbs.  I  believe  this  to  be  an 
excellent  plan,  "killing  two  birds  with 
one  stone,"  and  both  of  them  pretty  good 
birds. 


PROPS.— If  the  high  system  of  prunning 
has  been  observed,  the  fruit  will  be  borne 
near  the  extremities  of  long  slender 
branches,  and  it  is  generally  necessary  to 
sustain  these  branches  with  props  from  the 
time  the  oranges  are  half  grown  until  ma- 
tured and  gathered.  Poles  with  forked 
ends  are  in  general  use  for  this  purpose. 
If  props  are  not  used,  the  limbs  often 
break  with  their  weight  of  fruit  and  thus 
the  grower  suffers  loss  both  in  crop  and 
tree. 

PRODUCTIVE  CAPACITY  OF  SEEDLING.— 
A  seedling  tree  at  Riverside  bore  at  nine 
years  of  age  sixty  oranges  ;  the  next  year 
five  hundred,  and  the  next  two  thousand, 
when  it  was  accounted  at  fullest  produc- 
tiveness. Not  all  seedling  trees  even 
when  vigorous  and  healthful  in  every 
way  can  do  as  well  as  this  or  ought,  in 
fact,  to  be  allowed  to  produce  so  heavily. 

YIELD  OF  BUDDED  FRUIT  LESS.— Semi- 
drawf  budded  varieties  will  never  give  so 
large  a  yield,  tree  for  tree,  as  seedlings  ; 
but  the  difference  is  made  up  by  the  ear- 
liness  of  bearing,  the  extra  number  of 
trees  to  the  acre,  and  the  superior  quality 
of  the  fruit. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

PICKING,  PACKING  AND  SHIPPING. 


PICKING  TOO  EARLY.— The  most  ad- 
vanced of  the  orange  fruit,  having  at- 
tained about  three-fourths  of  its  normal 
size,  begins  to  assume  a  yellowish  color  in 
December  and  January.  Some  growers, 
desirous  of  obtaining  the  good  prices 
which  prevail  at  the  opening  of  the  mar- 
ket, pick  such  oranges  as  appear  ripe  in 
January  and  February.  When  they  do 
this  they  make  a  mistake.  The  juices  are 
not  at  that  time  properly  developed  and 
ripened,  and  the  fruit  is  sour  and  really 
unfit  to  eat.  The  short-sighted  people 
who  sell  such  trash  do  not  stop  to  consider 
that  for  a  mere  temporary  gain  they  are 
ruining  the  reputation  of  their  fruit,  and 
that  for  every  dollar  thus  made  they  must 
ultimately  lose  two.  The  man  who  eats 
one  of  these  sour  oranges  will  surely 
think  less  and  eat  less  of  the  fruit  the  rest 


of  the  season— perhaps  for  the  rest  of  his 
natural  life. 

THE  TIME  OF  RIPENING.— Oranges  be- 
gin to  attain  their  best  flavor  in  February, 
and  that  is  the  time  when  the  market 
should  be  opened.  The  fruit  on  the  outer 
branches  most  exposed  to  the  sun  ripens 
first  and  is  the  best.  That  growing  on  the 
inside  of  the  tree,  besides  being  slower  in 
maturing,  does  not  color  so  highly  and  is 
inferior  in  flavor. 

LONG  PRESERVATION.— The  orange,  un- 
like most  other  fruits,  does  not  begin  to 
deteriorate  directly  after  ripening,  and 
then  drop  from  its  stem.  It  will  hold  its 
juices  in  perfect  preservation  from  March 
until  June,  after  which  it  suffers  gradual 
loss,  but  remains  palatable  until  August 
or  September.  All  this  time  it  maintains 
its  place  on  the  tree,  unless  subjected  to 


ITS  CULTUEE  IN  CALIFOBNIA. 


71 


some  accident,  such  as  the  pricking  of  a 
thorn  or  a  violent  shaking  by  the  wind  or 
other  disturbing  element. 

A  YEAR  ON  THE  TREE. — It  is  not  an 
unusual  thing  to  find  oranges  hanging 
upon  the  tree  a  full  year  after  maturity 
and  when  the  next  succeeding  crop  is 
ripe.  Such  old  fruit,  although  in  out- 
ward appearance  as  sound  and  handsome 
as  ever,  is  found  when  picked  to  be  soft, 
and  when  opened,  to  contain  only  a  juice- 
less  pith. 

ORANGES  SHOULD  NOT  BE  LEFT  Too 
LONG. — It  is  a  bad  plan  to  leave  oranges 
unpicked  later  than  March  and  April,  at 
which  time  the  tree  puts  forth  its  blos- 
soms for  the  next  crop.  A  moment's 
reasoning  will  show  that  the  old  fruit,  in 
the  effort  to  maintain  itself,  must  absorb 
no  slight  quantity  of  the  juices  of  the 
tree,  and  this  to  the  detriment  of  the 
forthcoming  crop.  Thus  the  young  or- 
anges are  robbed  of  their  proper  aliment, 
while  the  old  grow  no  better,  and  nothing 
but  loss  results. 

THE  PROPER  SEASON— For  picking  or- 
anges is  then  from  February  to  April.  In 
the  earlier  part  of  this  season  I  would  ad- 
vise a  nice  discrimination,  in  order  that 
only  the  fully  ripe  fruit  be  taken.  Al- 
though the  color  may  be  substanstially 
the  same,  a  practiced  eye  and  hand  can 
easily  detect  the  difference  between  the 
ripe  and  the  unripe.  In  the  latter  part  of 
the  season  the  picker  may  gather  the  fruit 
clean  from  the  tree  as  he  goes. 

THE  BEST  PICKER. — Although  a  num- 
ber of  machines  and  devices  have  been  in- 
vented for  picking,  I  know  of  no  better  im- 
plement than  the  human  hand.  The  man 
or  woman  who  supplies  the  hand  and  the 
motive  power  therefor  may  stand  on  the 
ground  when  the  tree  is  small,  otherwise 
on  a  step-ladder.  The  picker  twists  the 
fruit  a  little  to  one  side,  and  with  a  quick 
double  jerk  breaks  the  stem  close  up.  It 
does  not  answer  to  pluck  the  orange  with 
straight  outward  pull,  as  in  that  case  a 
small  patch  of  skin  adhering  to  the  stem 
is  often  taken  out,  thus  ruining  the  orange 
for  market. 

MUST  NOT  BE  BRUISED.— In  no  case 
should  the  oranges  be  dropped  to  the 
ground  or  thrown  even  a  few  feet  to  their 


receptacle.  The  picker  generally  carries 
a  sack  slung  to  his  shoulder. 

GATHER  WHEN  DRY.— Oranges  should 
not  be  gathered  in  wet  weather  or  when 
there  is  dew  on  the  trees,  the  dampness 
being  unfavorable  to  the  keeping  quali- 
ties of  the  fruit. 

When  the  picker's  sack  is  full  he  de- 
posits the  contents  in  a  pile  beneath  the 
tree,  or  in  a  box  or  barrel,  thence  to  bo 
hauled  to  the  packing  house. 

Too  HASTY  PACKING.— It  has  been  al- 
most a  universal  custom  with  our  growers 
to  sort  and  pack  the  fruit  immediately 
after  picking,  and  ship  at  once.  I  pass 
over  without  just  reprobation  the  careless 
manner  in  which  this  work  has  usually 
been  done.  The  result  in  demoralized 
markets  and  short  returns  has  been 
shown  and  commented  on  elsewhere. 
For  present  purposes  it  is  sufficient  for 
me  to  point  out  the  better  way.  Those 
who  are  joined  to  their  idols  and  will  not 
learn  from  experience  are  not  likely  to  be 
admonished  by  a  scolding. 

CURING. — Although  we  have  totally  ig- 
nored the  plan  practiced  in  other  countries 
of  curing  or  seasoning  our  oranges  before 
packing,  and  have  succeeded  fairly  in 
making  our  fruit  keep  without  it,  I  still 
think  that  the  coming  packer  will  adopt 
this  system.  When  carried  to  the  packing 
house  the  oranges  should  be  spread  upon 
shelves  or  racks  not  more  than  two  or 
three  layers  deep,  all  haying  glaring  de- 
fects being  at  that  time  rejected.  The 
fruit  is  thus  left  from  two  to  five  days, 
during  which  a  portion  of  the  water  is 
evaporated  from  the  skin,  leaving  it  more 
tough  and  elastic  and  not  so  susceptible  to 
damage  by  bruising  as  in  the  fresh  state. 
Slight  blemishes  not  readily  discoverable 
at  first  are  likely  to  develop  by  this  time, 
and  the  defective  fruit  may  then  be  thrown 
out. 

SORTING. — I  would  advise  every  packer 
to  have  two  grades  of  fruit.  Let  him 
make  the  first  grade  as  uniform  in  size 
and  color  as  possible,  and  first  class  in 
every  respect.  In  sorting  for  this  he 
should  reject 

1— All  fruit  affected  by  rot. 

2— All  fruit  pricked  by  thorns. 

3 — All  fruit  with  skin  torn  or  abraded. 

4— All  fruit  that  is  unripe. 


THE  ORANGE; 


5 — All  fruit  that  is  under-colored. 

0 — All  fruit  that  is  too  large. 

7 — All  fruit  that  is  too  small. 

For  the  second  class  he  may  put  in  all 
fruit  rejected  from  the  first  that  is  sound 
and  ripe,  irrespective  of  size  and  color. 

CLEANING.— If  the  fruit  is  disfigured  by 
smut,  this  should  be  removed  with  a 
brush  before  packing. 

THE  GRADER.  — An  apparatus  which 
greatly  facilitates  the  assorting  of  oranges 
is  known  as  the  grader,  an  illustration  of 
which  appears  here  with: 


are  in  use:  One,  known  as  the  California 
box,  is  8  inches  wide,  19  inches  high  and 
22^  inches  long.  The  ends  are  a  little 
less  than  an  inch  thick  and  the  sides  and 
bottom  half  an  inch.  There  are  two  boards 
on  each  side,  between  which  cracks  of 
half  an  inch  to  an  inch  are  left  for  venti- 
lation. 

Another,  called  the  Eastern  box,  is  13 
inches  wide,  13  inches  high  and  26  inches 
long,  outside  measurement.  It  is  com- 
posed of  the  same  material  as  the  other 
box,  but  is  divided  into  two  compart- 
ments, each  of  which  measures 
a  cubic  foot  in  the  clear.  Ciacks 
are  also  left  for  ventilation.  The 
Easternbox  is  now  most  favored. 


THE  GRADER. 

There  is  no  standard  orange  grader. 
The  grader  in  use  at  Riverside  consists  of 
a  stand  38  inches  by  9K  feet  in  surface  di- 
mensions. It  is  inclined  from  one  end  to 
the  other,  the  higher  end  standing  36 
inches  from  the  ground  and  the  lower  18 
inches.  At  the  upper  end  there  is  a  table 
inclined  somewhat,  but  not  so  much  as 
the  rest  of  the  apparatus;  dimensions  38x33 
inches.  Below  this  there  are  two  series  of 
slats  running  lengthwise,  each  40  inches 
long.  These  slats  perform  the  office  of  a 
riddle  for  the  oranges  in  process  of  sort- 
ing. The  slats  in  the  upper  series  are  2>£ 
inches  apart,  and  those  in  the  lower  series 
3  inches  apart.  The  fruit  is  first  placed 
upon  the  table  .and  then  allowed  to  roll 
down  the  incline.  The  smallest  fruit  drops 
between  the  slats  of  the  first  series.  The 
rest  run  over  these  slats  and  the  next  in 
size  fall  between  those  of  the  second  series. 
The  oranges  that  are  too  large  for  the  last 
slats  (i.  c.,  more  than  three  inches  in  dia- 
meter) run  off. the  end  of  the  table.  Thus 
three  grades  are  accomplished.  Beneath 
each  of  the  riddles  is  fastend  a  burlap, 
bagging  to  the  middle,  where  there  is  a 
hole  allowing  the  oranges  to  roll  into  the 
receptacle  provided  for  them.  By  this  ap- 
pliance the  work  of  grading  is  accom- 
plished very  quickly  and  accurately. 

PACKING  BOXES.— Two  kinds  of  boxes 


WRAPPING. — Our  more  pro- 
gressive packers  are  adopting 
the  plan  of  wrapping  each  or- 
ange in  paper  as  it  is  placed  in 
the  box.  This  involves  a  good 
deal  of  labor  and  some  expense, 
but  it  also  offers  these  advantages: 

1.  It  is  a  protection  to  the  fruit  against 
bruising  while  in  transit. 

2.  It  absorbs  surplus  moisture,  thereby 
preventing  rot. 

3.  It  places  the  fruit  in  the  market  in  a 
tasty  manner  and  conveys  the  impression 
that  the  packer  at  least  had  a  good  appre- 
ciation of  it. 

4.  If  the  wrappers  are  printed,  it  becomes 
a    means    of    advertising    the    producer 
or  packer  and  the  variety  of   the  fruit. 
The  buyer  who  likes  the  oranges  will  look 
for  that  wrapper  the  next  time  he  buys. 

NUMBER  OF  ORANGS  TO  THE  Box.— With 
the  cases  above  described  oranges  run 
from  100  to  250  to  the  box.  The  happy 
medium  is  150; — this  for  seedlings  or  av- 
erage sized  budded  fruit,  like  the  Navel  or 
Mediterranean  Sweet.  Small  fruit  like 
the  St.  Michael  will  go  200  to  the  box  on  a 
good  average. 

NUMBERING  THE  CONTENTS.— The  or- 
anges are  counted  as  they  are  packed  and 
the  number  each  box  contains  marked  on 
one  end. 

BOXES  WELL  FILLED. — The  boxes  should 
be  filled  so  that  when  the  lid  is  put  on  it 
will  press  the  fruit  down  sufficiently  to 
prevent  it  from  shaking  about  in  hand- 
ling. 

COST  OF  PICKING  AND  PACKING.— The 


ITS  CULTUEE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


73 


Riverside  Fruit  Company  gives  the  cost 
per  box  as  follows : 

Gathering $0.05 

Packing,  including  wrapping 30 

Box .15 

Total £0.50 

SHIPPING.— As  soon  as  possible    after 
packing  the  boxes  should  be  shipped. 

MARKETS.— Up  to  the  time  the  Southern 
Pacific  railroad  was  completed,  giving  di- 
rect rail  communication  with  the  East, 
our  only  market  for  large  quantities  of 
citrus  fruits  was  San  Francisco.  Hand- 
ling our  products  from  the  early  times, 
when  the  fruit  had  not  been  brought  to  a 
high  standard,  and  when  the  packing  was 
uniformly  bad,  the  San  Francisco  mer- 
chants got  into  a  way  of  slaughtering  it, 
and  the  growers  of  Southern  California 
were  at  their  mercy.  Now  that  our  peo- 
ple are  making  an  effort  to  establish  a  bet- 
ter order  of  things,  they  find  their  past  bad 
record  and  the  settled  habits  of  the  San 
Franciscans  against  them.  The  metrop- 
olis of  the  State  is  therefore  quite  general- 
ly voted  an  uncertain  market.  This  has 
induced  producers  and  jobbers  within  the 
past  two  or  three  years  to  look  eastward 
for  the  disposal  of  their  fruits.  Arizona 
and  New  Mexico  are  our  natural  fields  of 
consumption  and  these  have  been  fully 
supplied.  Markets  have  been  opened 
also  in  Denver,  Kansas  City,  St.  Louis, 
nicago,  Minneapolis,  and  some  ship- 
ments have  been  made  as  far  as  the  At- 
lantic seaboard.  Not  all  of  these  ship- 
ments have  proven  satisfactory.  This 
fact  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  when  we 
consider  that  many  of  the  shipments 
were  pioneer  efforts.  Some  of  the  ven- 
tures, however,  were  highly  satisfactory. 
A  Riverside  shipper  cites  his  experience 
as  follows: 

"  My  oranges  sold  in  San  Francisco  last 
season  (1884)  from  $2  to  $4  per  box.  At 
about  the  same  time  in  Denver  the  same 
class  of  my  seedling  oranges  (165  to  the 
box)  sold  for  $ 7.83.  Another  gentleman 
who  shipped  to  Denyer  with  me  received 
for  his  very  choice  Riverside  Navels, 


$8.22  per  box  of  137.  It  costs  about  $4.20 
to  pay  freight  and  commission  on  a  box 
of  Riverside  lemons  sold  in  Denver  and 
$3.50  on  a  tbox  of  oranges.  The  cost  of 
shipment  to  San  Francisco  and  commis- 
sion is  75  cents  per  box.  This  makes  the 
Denver  market  nearly  $2  per  box  better 
than  San  Francisco." 

FREIGHTS. — The  high  freights  of  the 
Southern  Pacific  railroad*  have  been  the 
chief  impediment  to  eartern  shipments. 
Some  concessions  were  made  by  this  com- 
pany during  the  past  year,  but  the  tariff 
is  still  too  high.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the 
advent  of  a  competing  railroad,  wkich  we 
have  in  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific,now  estab- 
lishing termini  on  this  coast,  will  put 
quite  a  different  face  on  the  matter;— tha 
we  shall  soon  have  cheap  access  to  all 
available  Eastern  markets.  One  thing  is 
certain:  San  Francisco  cannot  be  relied 
on  to  furnish  an  outlet  for  our  vast  citrus 
productions,  and  [the  sooner  our  people 
establish  their  own  commercial  relations 
with  consuming  markets  the  larger  their 
returns. 

AVOIDING  THE  TROUBLE  OF  PICKING, 
PACKING  AND  SHIPPING.— Of  late  years, 
jobbing  firms  of  wealth  and  experience 
have  come  to  the  fore  as  purchasers  of 
our  citrus  fruits,  and  the  most  common 
practice  among  producers  is  to  sell  their 
crops  on  the  trees.  They  are  thus  relieved 
of  all  trouble  and  responsibility  in  the 
premises,  and  realize  more  satisfactorily 
than  though  they  undertook  the  work 
themselves.  The  jobbers,  well  versed  in 
the  modus  operandi  of  packing,  shipping 
and  supplying  the  various  markets,  can 
handle  the  fruit  to  much  better  advantage 
than  individual  producers. 


*NOTE.— The  railroad  company  reduced  the  rate 
on  oranges  last  year  (1884)  to  all  points  east  of  the 
Missouri  river  from  $350  to  $250  per  carload;  to 
Tucson  and  Benson,  A.  T.,  to  $225  per  carload;  to 
Kansas  City  $200  per  carload.  The  through  rates 
two  years  ago  were  as  high  as  $600  per  car.  The 
difference  in  favor  of  orange  growers  is  very  large, 
being  over  $1  per  box.  This  traffic  is  only  in  its 
inception.  Each  year  it  will  increase,  and  with  the 
increase  no  doubt  further  reductions  will  occur. 


THE  OEANGE; 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

REJUVENATING  OLD  TREES— BUDDING  OLD  TREES. 


When  old  orange  trees  become  sickly 
and  practically  useless  by  reason  of  ex- 
hausted vitality  or  insect  pests  they  may 
be  restored  by  adopting  the  following 
course;  Denude  the  tree  of  leaves  alto- 
gether, cutting  away  all  of  the  top  except 
the  leading  branches.  Wash  these  branch- 
es and  the  trunk  thoroughly  with  an  in- 
secticide and  wrap  the  trunk  in  burlap  to 
protect  it  from  the  sun.  Manure  the 
ground  about  the  tree,  and  irrigate  thor- 
oughly. The  tree  will  send  out  a  multi- 
tude of  new  shoots,  which  should  be 
thinned  out  judiciously.  In  one  year  the 
tree  will  have  a  fine  top  and  in  two  years 
will  begin  again.  In  this  way  diseased 
trees  may  generally  be  entirely  reclaimed. 

BUDDING  OLD  ORANGE  ORCHARDS.— 
The  question  of  converting  old  seedling 
orange  trees  into  budded  trees  is  attract- 
ing attention  on  account  of  the  high  price 
of  the  Riverside  Navel  as  compared  with 
the  seedling  fruit.  A  letter  was  recently 
written  to  Mr.  Alex.  Craw,  foreman  of  the 
Wolfskill  orchards  in  Los  Angeles,  for 
information  relative  to  the  budding  re- 
cently done  on  the  large  trees  in  that  or- 
chard, and  the  following  reply  was  had, 
which  was  published  in  the  Riverside 
PPESS  AND  HORTICULTURIST: 

"  TWOGOOD  <fc  EDWARDS— Gentlemen:— 
Yours  of  the  20th  inst.  is  received,  and  in 
reply  to  your  question  relative  to  budding 
large  seedling  orange  trees  I  will  give  you 
the  particulars  of  how  the  trees  were 
treated  that  you  refer  to. 

"  Orange  budders  know  the  difficulty  of 


getting  a  bud  to  take  in  the  old  wood  of 
large  trees.  Knowing  this,  and  wishing 
to  have  the  buds  start  nearer  the  center  of 
the  trees,  I  sawed  off  one  or  two  of  the 
leaders  or  center  branches  in  the  spring 
and  left  the  side  branches  to  fruit  the  next 
season.  The  branches  so  cut  off  should  bo 
painted  with  rubber  paint.  They  will 
produce  a  number  of  young  shoots.  These 
should  be  thinned  out  to  two  or  three,  so 
as  to  shape  the  tree,  and  the  remaining 
ones  should  be  budded  in  the  fall,  and  left 
as  dormant  buds;  or  they  may  be  budded 
the  next  spring.  After  the  fruit  is  all 
picked  from  the  side  branches,  cut  all  up- 
right branches  back  one-half,  as  otherwise 
the  tendency  would  be  to  draw  too  much 
vigor  from  the  buds.  In  this  way  you 
can  have  some  fruit  each  year  until  the 
buds  come  in  and  commence  bearing. 
Next  season  you  will  have  a  fine  top  and 
can  cut  away  all  lower  branches  of  the 
seedling  stock.  Then  wrap  the  trunk  of 
the  tree  and  the  exposed  limbs  with  cy- 
press branches  or  bullrushes  to  prevent 
them  from  from  becoming  sunburnt. 

"  In  this  way  Mr.  Wolfskill  has  had  ripo 
fruit  on  trees  twenty  months  from  the 
bud,  and  has  made  large  healthy  trees 
besides." 

Mr.  Craw  is  one  of  the  most  experienced 
orchardists  in  Southern  California,  especi- 
ally in  the  management  of  the  orange  and 
lemon.  He  has  recently  converted  a  large 
orchard  of  seedling  orange  trees  to  budded 
fruit  in  a  most  skillful  manner,  and  the 
modus  operandi  is  given  above  very  briefly. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

ANALYSES  OF  RIVERSIDE  ORANGES  AND  LEMONS. 


The  following  is  the  University  Experi- 
ment Station  Bulletin  No.  39,  on  analyses 
of  the  orange: 

The  samples  of  Riverside  citrus  fruits 
shown  at  the  Citrus  Fair  March,  1885, with 
the  exception  of  those  marked  a  and  b 
were  received  through  the  hands  of  Mr. 
Chas.  H.  Dwinelle,  on  his  return  from  the 


fair.  All  were  in  excellent  condition  and 
were  worked  during  the  days  following 
April  3d,  the  day  of  receipt. 

The  samples  marked  a  and  b  formed 
part  of  a  collection  received  some  time  af- 
terwards, through  the  courtesy  of  Mr.  J. 
E.  Cutter,  W.  H.  Backus,  J.  H.  North  and 
other  exhibtors,  of  Riverside.  They  were 


ITS  CULTUEE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


75 


kept  on  shelves  in  a  room  until  May  15th, 
when  the  Navel  had  lost  some  of  its  orig- 
inal firmness  and  the  Malta  Blood  was  be- 
gining  to  show  shrinkage  from  drying. 

These  samples  had  therefore  been  keep 
six  weeks.longer  than  the  others,  but  were 
in  good  condition.  Four  of  the  Navels  still 
on  hand  at  this  date— May  22d— though 
soft  to  the  touch  are  perfectly  sound. 

The  data  given  in  the  table  below  ex- 
plains themselves.  Column  No.  1  gives  th$ 
average  weight,  in  drains,  of  the  fruit  ex- 
amined, usualy  two  in  number;  a  division 
by  30  gives  this  weight  in  ounces  avoirdu- 
pois. Column  2,  3  and  4  give  the  percent- 
age of  rind,  pulp  and  seed  respectively. 

It  will  be  noted  that  the  Navel  and  Malta 
Blood  oranges  and  Eureka  lemon  were 


found  seedless,  the  largest  proportion 
of  seeds  being  found  in  the  St.  Michaels' 
orange.  Column  5  gives  the  per  cent  of 
juice  in  cubic  centimeters,  referred  to  the 
weight  of  the  fruit  in  grams;  and  since 
the  density  of  the  juice  is  somewhat  above 
that  of  water,  this  percentage,  if  taken 
by>eight,  would  be  a  little  higher  than 
here  given;  but  for  the  practical  compari- 
son the  figures  hold  good.  Column  6  gives 
the  actual  amount  of  juice  obtained  per 
single  fruit,  again  in  cubic  centimeters, 
which,  by  division  by  the  number  30  may 
be  reduced  to  fluid  ounces.  Column  7  and 
8  give  the  percentage  in  the  juice  of  cane 
sugar  (sucrose)  and  fruit  sugar  (levulose), 
the  sum  of  sugars  being  shown  in  column 
9.  Column  10,  finally,  gives  the  percent- 
age of  acid  calculated  as  citric  acid. 


ANALYSES    OF    CITRUS    FRUITS. 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

4 

s 

I 

I 

og 
•    o 

B  *<>2 

Sue 

ABS. 

«a 
sff 

g 

NAME. 

:  | 

•     «*• 

1.  Per  cent. 

[ 

0 

e.  Per  cent, 
cm  

If 

0 
0  B. 

o 
S§ 

B  ? 
f* 

1    3? 

gl 

I 

.  Per  cent. 

CHANGES. 

288  0 

33  5 

65  6 

0  9 

4  47 

1  67 

6  14 

1  10 

2.  Riverside  Navel  (a)  
3   Riverside  Navel  (b) 

283.7 

30.0 

70.0 

41.42 

117.5 

5.04 
4.47 

2.10 
1.96 

7.14 
6.43 

.92 
.86 

4.  Paper  Rind  St.  Michael.  .  .  . 
5.  Malta  Blood  (a)  . 

158.0 
139.0 

17.3 
26  8 

80.1 
73.2 

2.6 

52.58 
48.55 

82.7 
67.5 

4.09 
3.92 

1.68 
1.81 

5.77 
7.73 

1.01 
1.52 

6.  Malta  Blood  (b)  

LEMONS. 

7.  Lisbon  

115.2 

35.7 

63.9 

0.4 

43.40 

50.0 

4.01 

1.55 

5.56 

1.34 
6.79 

8.  Eureka  
9.  Limes  

157.0 
53.5 

22.4 
15.9 

77.6 
83.4 

"6".  7* 

45.22 
56.53 

71.0 
30.3 







7.21 
6.86 

1.  Mediterranean  Sweet  orange,  from  W.  H.  Back- 
us. 

2.  Riverside  Navel  orange,  from  John  G.  North, 
Taken  from  a  plate  of  five  oranges  which  received 
the  first  prize  for  the  best  budded  orange  and  best 
orange  on  exhibition. 

3.  Riverside  (or  Australian?)  Navel  orange,  from 
J.  E.  Cutter. 


4.  Paper  Rind  St.  Michael  orange,  from  W.  H. 
Backus. 

5.  Malta  Blood  orange,  grower  not  mentioned. 

6.  Same,  grower  not  known. 

7.  Lisbon  Lemon,  from  E.  W.  Holmes. 

8.  Eureka  lemon,  from  same. 

9.  Limes,  from  W.  H.  Backus. 


These  analyses  show  some  interesting 
and  important  points  of  difference  between 
the  several  fruits.  The  Navel  shows  the 
highest  total  sugar  and  lowest  acid  of  all; 
and  this  is  true  equally  of  the  earlier  and 
later  samples,  a  and  6.  The  Mediterranean 
Sweet  stands  next  in  sugar  percentage ;its 
acid  is  a  little  higher  than  that  of  the  St. 
Micheals  in  absolute  percentage,  but  the 
proportion  between  sugar  and  acid  is  prac- 
tically identical  in  the  two,  the  juice  of  the 


St  Michaels  being  a  little  weaker  in  both 
substances.  The  Malta  Blood  is  a  little 
lower  in  sugar  then  the  St.  Michaels,  but 
exceeds  it  in  acid  by  50  per  cent  in  the  ear- 
lier sample. 

It  thus  would  seem  that,  apart  from  its 
inviting  outward  appearance,  the  River- 
side Navel  owes  its  place  in  public  favor  to 
three  chief  points:  A  high  degree  of  sweet- 
ness, with  a  low  degree  of  acid,  and  the 
firmness  of  flesh  which  invites  it  to  be  actu- 


THE  ORANGE, 


ally  eaten  instead  of  "sucked"  as  one  is  acid.    Assuming  7  per  cent  as  the  usual 

tempted  to  do  with  the  other  softer  or-  average,  it  will  be  noted  that  the  Eureka 

anges.  is  nearly  as  much  above  it  as  the  Lisbon 

The  Mediterranean  Sweet  and  the  St.  is  below.    The  limes  stand  nearly  at  tlie 

Michael  dispute  precedence,  according  as  same  point  as  the  Lisbon,  but  show  a  con- 

indivdual  tastes  differ  in  respect  to  size  siderable   higher    proportion  of  pulp  as 

and  flavor;  but  the  St.  Michael  seems  to  well  as  of  juice  then  either  of  the  two 

have  a  greater  firmness  of  flesh  in  its  fav-  lemons,  being  fully  13  per  cent  above  the 

or.    The  refreshing  acidity  and  peculiar  Lisbon  in  the  latter  respect, 

flavor  of  the  Blood  orange  place  it  in  a  dif-  While  these  comparisons  will  probably 

ferent  category  from  the  other  three.  hold  good  in  general    as  between  these 

The  first  six  columns,  however,  furnish  varieties,  the  absolute  figures  (percentages) 

food  for  additional  consideration,  especial-  must  be  taken  with  allowance  for  the  pe- 

ly  when  oranges  are  sold  by  the  piece  or  culiarity  of  the  season  of  1884,  with  its  un- 

thousand  and  not  by  weight.     The  Medi-  usual  rains  and  low  temperature.    A  ref- 

terranean  Sweet  shows  a  slightly  heavier  erence  to  the  analysis  made  in  1879  (see 

weight  then  the  Navel,  but  the  larger  pro-  the  report  of  the  College  of  Agriculture  for 

portion  of  pulp  in  the  latter  more  then  that  year,  pp.  59  and  60)  shows  a  much 

makes  up  for  the  difference.     Owing  to  an  higher  average  of  both  sugar  and  acid  for 

accident,  the  proportion  of  juice  to  pulp  the  oranges  and  of  acid  for  the  lemons; 

was  not  determined  in  the  case  of  the  the  proportion  of  pulp  also  seems  to  have 

Mediterranean  Sweet;  in  the  Navel  the  been  higher  throughout, 

figures    show  it  to   have  been  about  59  E.  W.  HILGARD. 

per  cent,  whereas  in  the  St.  Micheals  it  Berkeley,  May  22, 1885. 
goes  as  high  as  65.6,  in  the  Malta  to  66.3 

per  cent.     The  latter  two  are,  therefore,  ANALYSIS  OF  THE  ORANGE. 

quite  materially  more  juicy  than  the  Navel,  Composition  of  the  ashes  of  the  fruit: 

nence  more  delicate  in  transportation.  Mineral 

The  St.  Michaels  show  the  highest  per-  Constituents.                           Percent.    Percent! 

centageof  pulp  of  all,  notwithstanding  the    Potash 20.15       15.28 

relative  abundance  of  seed;  and  hence  a    Soda 10.22       12.14 

given  weight  of  this  variety  would  furnish  ^S^V/^^r.^^n  ^ol       TlG 

the  largest  amount  of  eatable  pulp,while  if  Phosphoric  acid................  20.04       18.24 

bought  per  thousand,  the  light  weight  of    Sulphuric  acid 1.08         4.14 

the  fruit  would  leave  the  consumer  mate-    Silicic  acid 4.50 

rially  "short"  ascompared  with  the  Navel  Loss!.!L!?"Z.'.'.V".'.'.'.'.T.'.'.    <X62         1.29 

or  Mediterranean  Sweet.    Comparing  the  — '- — 

earlier  fruit  with  that  analysed  six  weeks  100.00     100.00 

later,  there  is  in  the  case  of  both'the  Nav-    Ashes  of  the  fruifc 3'57        3'48 

el  and  St.  Micheal  a  decided  decrease  of  Composition  of  the  trunk,  branches  and 

both  sugar  and  acid ;  exactly  the  reverse  leayes :                               Trunks  and 

of  what  would  have  been  looked  for,  as  Branches    Leaves. 

these  ingredients   might  have  been  sup-  Potash                                ^iVlS*'   ^oTs"*' 

posed  to  be  concentrated  by  evaporation.  Soda......... ...!!!."................  10.67       10.82 

There  is  therefore  a  true  deterioration  in     Lime 31.57       41.22 

oranges  kept  beyond  the  point  of  proper    Magnesia. 10.64         6.53 

.•ipenesS,thatamplyjustifleslhepreferenee  SS^SC^:      ii  %       '£g 

of  consumers  for  the  freshest  fruit.  Silicic  acid 2.82         5.48 

As  regards  the  lemons,  the  comparison     Iron  and  loss 6.44         1.77 

between  the    Lisbon    and    Eureka    tells  ToCKK)      10000 

strongly  in  favor  of  the  latter.    It  is  larger    Azoe  of  the  leaves 1.57         1.60 

and  has  a  higher  percentage  of  pulp  as    Ashes  of  the  leaves 6.32         6.20 

well  as  juice,  while  at  the  same  time  the  The  orange  trees  above  analyzed  were 

latter   is    considerably    richer    in    citric  from  Alcira,  (Valencia),  Spain. 


Part  III. 

LEMONS,  LIMES  AND  CITRONS, 


CHAPTER  I. 


LEMONS. 


"Lemon  culture  in  California  has  not 
kept  pace  with  orange  culture.  For  this 
two  reasons  are  assignable: 

1st.  The  territory  adapted  to  the  grow- 
ing of  lemons  is  much  restricted. 

2d.  The  lemons  mostly  grown  have, 
been  inferior,  and  the  demand  and  com- 
pensation correspondingly  small. 

These  obstacles  are  by  no  means  insur- 
mountable. Now  that  the  suitable  condi- 
tions for  the  lemon  tree  have  been  well 
defined  by  experience,  the  fact  is  evident 
that  there  are  many  locations— a  large 
acreage — where  the  lemon  may  be  suc- 
cessfully grown.  As  to  the  quality  of  the 
fruit,  that  may  be  improved  just  as  all 
other  fruits  are  improved— by  the  selec- 
tion of  fine  varieties  and  their  perpetua- 
tion by  budding.  Given  a  locality  well 
suited  to  the  requirements  of  the  tree  and 
a  selected  variety,  and  I  challenge  the 
citrus  growing  world  to  produce  a  finer 
lemon  than  we  can  grow  in  Southern  Cal- 
ifornia. Until  live  or  six  years  ago  no 
efforts  were  made  to  introduce  tine  varie- 
ties of  this  fruit.  The  kind  universally 
grown  was  a  Seedling  from  the  Sicily 
lemon,  and  indeed  at  the  present  time 
these  constitute  the  great  bulk  of  the  lem- 
ons on  our  market.  This  Seedling  is  a 
large,  coarse-grained  fruit,  with  a  rind 
from  a  quarter  to  a  half  inch  in  thickness, 
a  pulp  inversely  small,  and  the  juice  lack- 
ing in  both  quantity  and  quality.  Such  a 
lemon  is  a  palpable  fraud  upon  the  pur- 
chaser, as  it  does  not  perform  the  half 
that  it  promises  by  its  exterior  bulk.  It 
is  undesirable  for  the  shipper  and  mer- 
chant because  it  is  quite  perishable.  The 
pulpy  rind  when  subjected  to  a  slight 
bruise  or  to  too  close  packing  is  speedily 
smitten  with  decay,  and  the  fruit  is  often 
lost  in  transit.  When  we  consider  that 
these  lemons  have  too  often  been  picked 
and  packed  in  the  most  bungling  and 
shiftless  manner;  that  the  sweating  pro- 
cess previous  to  shipment  has  been  al- 


most wholly  unknown  or  disregarded,' 
that  the  fruit  has  reached  the  consignee 
many  times  in  a  rotten  or  semi-rotten 
condition,  and  that  when  presented  at  its 
very  best  it  is  a  third  or  fourth  class  arti- 
cle; when  we  consider  all  these  points  we 
need  not  wonder  that  our  lemon  trade  is 
in  the  doldrums. 

The  remedy  for  this  condition  of  things 
is  easy  of  accomplishment:  Raise  good 
fruit.  Prepare  and  ship  it  properly.  We 
ma}'  then  sell  all  the  lemons  we  raise  and 
realize  handsomely  from  this  industry. 

The  lemon  tree,  being  more  susceptible 
to  frost  than  the  orange,  is  not  adapted  to 
our  middle  and  lower  lands,  except  in  well 
sheltered  quarters.  It  thrives  however 
on  our  mesas,  at  an  altitude  of  one  thou- 
sand to  two  thousand  feet  above  sea  level,, 
where  frosts  severe  enough  to  damage  it 
have  never  been  known.  There  are  thou- 
sands of  acres  of  such  land  in  Southern 
California,  some  already  improved  in 
fruit  farms  and  much  still  awaiting  devel- 
opment. 

Discussing  lemon  culture  in  a  paper 
read  before  the  State  Horticultural  Socie- 
ty in  1883,  Mr.  L.  M.  Holt,  one  of  our  best 
authorities  on  citrus  trees,  has  this  to  say: 

u  The  climate  must  be  such  that  the  ex- 
treme cold  shall  not  be  hard  enough  to  kill 
the  trees  or  injure  the  fruit,  and  it  must 
be  of  such  a  character  that  the  common 
scale  and  the  fungus  known  as  black  dust 
shall  not  flourish. 

"  When  the  mercury  has  been  down  to 
23°  above  zero,  the  orchardist  will  find  his 
lime  trees  killed,  his  lemon  trees  badly 
frosted,  and  his  smaller  orange  trees  hurt, 
especially  if  his  budded  orange  trees  are 
on  lemon,  China  lemon,  or  lime  roots. 

"  Cold  weather  produces  a  thick  skin,  a 
lack  of  juice,  and  in  the  case  of  the  lemon 
a  lack  of  acid.  Climate,  also,  has  much> 
to  do  with  the  common  scale  and  black 
dust.  They  prevail  mostlj'  along  the  coast 
valleys,  and  increase  from  San  Diega 


82 


THE  LEMON,  LIME  AND  CITEON. 


northward,  while  the  interior  valleys  are 
more  generally  free  from  the  pests.  San 
Diego  i.s  effected  but  slightly.  The  inte- 
rior valleys  of  Los  Angeles  county  have 
less  than  the  coast  valleys,  while  San  Ber- 
nardino county  is  entirely  free  from  the 
Jjlack  dust,  and  only  occasionally  has  the 
scale. 

"All  new  countries  experiment  with 
fruits  by  planting  the  seed,  raising  the 
tree  and  fruiting  it.  If  successful,  the  cul- 
ture is  then  commenced  more  systemati- 
cally. This  course  was  pursued  with  the 
orange  and  lemon.  Seeds  from  the  Sicily 
lemon  were  planted,  and  the  fruit  thereof 
was  called  the  Sicily  lemon.  In  this  re- 
spect there  is  a  wide  difference  between 
the  orange  and  lemon,  as  the  Seedling  or- 
ange is  a  valuable  fruit,  while,  as  a  rule, 
the  Seedling  lemon  is  worthless." 

Conceding  the  fact  that  the  area  of  pos- 
sible production  is  much  smaller  for  lem- 
ons than  for  oranges,  and  that  the  indus- 
try is  less  likelj'  to  be  overdone  than  any 
other  branch  of  citrus  culture,  it  seems  to 
me  that  lemon  growing  otters  great  in- 
ducements to  the  horticulturist*  who  is 
rightly  situated  to  engage  in  it.  The  char- 


acter of  the  lemon  as  a  fruit  is  also  quite 
different  from  that  of  the  orange,  the  form- 
er being  more  of  a  staple.  Lemon  juice 
enters  largely  into  manufactured  pro- 
ducts— in  citric  acid  and  in  cooking.  The 
habit  of  the  tree  also  in  forming  and  ma- 
turing its  fruit  successively  for  several 
months  of  the  year  favors  a  long  market. 
Under  proper  conditions  the  lemon  tree 
is  hardy,  thrifty  and  a  prolific  bearer.  It 
requires  less  water  than  the  orange.  These 
are  all  advantages  worth  considering. 

The  imported  lemon  sells  in  the  leading 
markets  at  from  $8  to  $10  per  box,  or  from 
$24  to  $30  per  thousand;  the  California 
lemon  commands  from  $2.50  to  $3  per  box, 
or  from  $10  to  $15  per  thousand. 

Why  should  not  the  California  lemon, 
if  raised  to  an  equal  standard  with  the  im- 
ported fruit  command  an  equal  price? 

In  1881  the  importation  of  lemons  to  the 
United  States  amounted  to  860,241  boxes, 
or  a  total -of  301,084,352  lemons.  For  the 
ten  years  preceding  1881  there  had  been 
an  average  increase  of  54,271  boxes  annu- 
ally. As  long  as  this  vast  and  increasing 
consumption  continues,  there  must  be  a 
field  for  lemon  growing. 


CHAPTER  II. 

AN  INVESTIGATION  OF  LEMONS  AND  LEMON  CULTURE. 


At  the  Citrus  P"air,  held  in  Riverside  in 
1883,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  make 
thorough  scientific  tests,  for  purposes  of 
comparison  of  lomons  grown  in  Califor- 
nia and  of  some  samples  of  the  imported 
fruit.  The  committee  was  also  instructed 
to  consider  the  status  of  lemon  growing 
in  California,  and  to  report  upon  the  best 
means  for  the  promotion  of  the  industry. 
The  committee  made  a  valuable  report,  a 
portion  of  which  is  subjoined: 

EXTRACT  FROM    THE    REPORT  OF  THE  COM- 
MITTEE. 

"  To  assist  the  growers  of  citrus  fruits  in 
Southern  California  in  supplying  the  in- 
creased demand  for  the  lemon,  and  to 
place  the  crops  grown  by  them  properly 
before  the  consumers  of  the  Pacific  Coast, 
was  the  object  of  this  examination. 

"That  there  is  a  very  profitable  field  yet 
unoccupied  by  the  growers  of  citrus  fruits, 


is  very  clearly  shown  by  the  following 
statistics,  gathered  from  the  valuable  re- 
port of  J.  H.  Bostwick,  upon  the  importa- 
tion of  green  fruits  into  the  United  States 
for  1881  and  preceding  years. 

"  From  this  we  find  that  in  the  years  1872 

and  1881  the  inportations  were  as  follows: 

No.  Boxes.  No.  Lemons. 

1872 317,532  111,136,200 

1881 8!>0,241  301,084,352 

"An  increase  in  ten  years  of  542,709 
boxes  and  189,918,152  lemons;  an  annual 
average  increase  of  54,271  boxes. 

"  It  is  a  notabe  fact  that  while  the  impor- 
tation of  the  lemon  has  increased  so  rap- 
idly, that  of  the  orange,  during  the  same 
time,  has  increased  only  half  as  much  from 
all  sources,  and  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose 
that  this  increase  in  the  importation  of  the 
orange  will  be  entirely  checked  within  ten 
years  by  the  great  productiveness  of  the 


THE  LEMON,  LIME  AND  CITKON. 


83 


growers  of  Florida,  Louisiana,  and  Cali- 
fornia. 

"  The  foreign  lemon,  always  command- 
ing the  highest  price  in  the  San  Francisco 
market,  was  adopted  by  the  committee  as 
a  standard  of  comparison  for  the  lemons 
grown  in  Southern  California. 

"  Freshly  imported  specimens  were  se- 
cured from  Messina,  Malaga  and  Paler- 
mo, direct  from  Boston,  through  the  lib- 
erality of  Mr.  H.  B.  Everest,  and  Messi- 
n as  from  Messrs.  Dalton  «fe  Gray,  of  San 
Francisco,  the  latter  having  been  picked 
some  six  months.  All  the  specimens  were 
in  good  condition. 

"  The  lemons  of  Southern  'California 
were  from  all  the  important  fruit-growing 
districts  of  this  section,  and  from  the  fact 
that  they  were  picked  about  the  same 
time  and  cured  in  the  same  manner,  the 
collection  was  the  best  in  its  average  ap- 
pearance and  quality  ever  placed  upon 
exhibition  in  the  State. 

"The  following  table  shows  the  result 
of  the»analyses: 


OQ' 

| 

? 

1 

B 

S 

fj 

U 

§ 

B 

B 

B 

a 

fft- 

a 

a 

a 

(Tt- 

a 

VARIETY.     . 

5* 

s' 

gl 

I 

2 

x 

c 

o' 

s' 

Hi 

01 

i 

0 

i 

00 

B 

i 

Lisbinj,  average  11  tests 
Kureka,  average  7  tests 

28.1  !l0.19 
25.  251  9.33 

36.6 
37.0 

8.86 
8.81 

.89 
.81 

Sweet  Rind,  1  test  

34.0  J10.12 

29.7 

8.77 

.89 

Knoly  >y 

17.5  !  fi-0 

34.2 

9.15 

.55 

Imported  Messina  

26.5 

12.0 

45.2 

8.19 

.98 

Impbrted  Palermo  

17.0 

5.75 

33.8 

9.65 

.55 

Imported  Malaga  

21.5 

7.0 

32.5 

8.29 

.58 

"  The  following  points  were  adopted  as  a 
basis  of  comparison  with  the  foreign  lem- 
ons: 

"First  —  Appearance,  including  size  of 
lemon  and  quality  of  rind. 

"  Second — Bitterness. 

"Third — Percentage  of  acidity. 

"  FIRST — APPEARANCE,  ETC. — A  lemon 
weighing  about  three  ounces,  when  cured, 
of  a  bright  golden  color,  with  a  smooth, 
soft  rind,  seems  to  be  the  favorite  in  the 
markets;  and  in  all  these  respects  the  com- 
mittee were  unanimous  in  the  opinion 
hat  the  budded  lemons  on  exhibition  for 


Southern  California  were  fully  equal  to 
the  best  imported. 

14  The  Sweet  Rinds  and  most  of  the  Seed- 
lings, with  an  occasional  Lisbon  and 
Eureka,  were  above  the  standard  size  and 
weight.  This  will  nearly  always  occur 
when  the  fruit  is  permitted  to  hang  longer 
upon  the  tree  than  is  necessary  to  mature 
it  for  market. 

"  It  was  noticed  in  the  examination  that 
the  lemons  of  Santa  Barbara,  Ventura, 
Los  Angeles,  Anaheim  and  San  Diego 
were  nearly  globular  in  form,  and  all  hav- 
ing a  smooth,  morocco-like  texture  of  the 
rind,  while  those  of  the  same  varieties 
found  in  San  Gabriel  and  Pasadena  were 
more  elongated  in  form  and  not  as  smooth, 
and  those  of  Riverside  and  vicinity  were 
still  more  elongated  and  rougher  in  rind— 
a  marked  difference  that  must,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  committee,  be  attributed  to 
the  differences  in  the  temperature  and  hu- 
midity of  the  atmosphere  in  the  localities 
named. 

"It  is  noticeable  that  the  smoothness 
and  thinness  of  rind  indicate  greater  quan- 
tity of  juice,  owing  to  the  better  develop- 
ment and  cured  state  of  the  lemon.  The 
extreme  size  does  not  show  its  proportion- 
al quantity  of  juice,  but  the  medium  sizes 
show  the  best  averages. 

"  SECOND — BITTERNESS.— A  bitter  lemon 
is  worthless  for  market  purposes,  and  to 
the  fact  that  so  many  of  the  Seedling  lem- 
ons of  California  are  bitter,  is  to  be  attrib- 
uted, to  a  great  extent,  the  low  value  of 
this  lemon  in  the  San  Francisco  markets. 

"The  test  for  bitterness,  as  adopted  by 
the  committee,  was  much  more  severe 
than  that  required  of  the  lemon  in  ordi- 
nary use;  yet  the  result  was  an  exceeding- 
ly favorable  one  for  the  best  budded  vari- 
eties of  our  lemons. 

"Out  of  forty-eight  samples  tested,  thir- 
ty were  entirely  free  from  bitterness; 
seven  showed  only  a  trace,  and  eleven 
were  decidedly  bitter. 

"  We  think,  from  this  showing,  it  will 
not  be  difficult  for  our  fruit  growers  to 
eliminate  all  traces  of-  bitterness  from  the 
fruit  grown  here.  To  do  this  successfully 
the  causes  must  be  thoroughly  under- 
stood, and  the  remedies,  well  known,  as 
thoroughly  applied. 

"As  a  foundation   for  further  and  more 


84 


THE  LEMON,  LIME  AND  CITRON. 


investigation,  we  oiler  the  fol- 
lowing suggestions  as  to  causes: 

44  We  are  inclined  to  the  belief  that  the 
stock  has  a  great  deal  to  do  with  the  bit- 
terness of  the  fruit.  It  is  well  known  that 
the  fruit  of  the  Seedling  Sicily  lemon  is,  as 
a  rule,  bitter,  as  grown  in  Southern  Cali- 
fornia, while  the  fruit  grown  from  buds 
upon  the  sweet  orange  stock  is  generally 
more  free  from  bitterness.  Of  the  eleven 
varieties  marked  as  bitter  in  the  foregoing 
list,  it  will  be  seen  that  six  are  Seedlings, 
four  are  budded  on  the  lemon  stock,  and 
only  one  was  on  orange  stock. 

"The  condition  of  the  fruit  during 
growth  will,  to  some  extent,  cause  bitter- 
ness of  the  rind.  If  checked  in  its  growth 
by  lack  or  excess  of  moisture,  or  by  cold, 
bitterness  will  .result. 

44  Sample  No.  12  is  an  evidence  of  this, 
as  it  is  from  a  tree  that  last  season  pro- 
duced fruit  entirely  free  from  bitternees, 
while  this  season  the  fruit  was  not  fully 
grown  and  was  imperfect  when  picked. 
[Tliis  sample  tested  above  the  general  av- 
erage in  percentage  of  citric  acid.] 

"Auain,  we  think  that  bitterness,  like 
any  other  quality,  can  be  transmitted 
through  budding,  and  heitce,  when  bitter 
fruit  is  found  in  successive  years  upon  the 
orange  stock,  it  is  due  to  want  of  care  in 
selecting  stock  to  bud  from. 

"  It  is  found  also  that  fruit  from  young 
trees  shows  traces  of  bitterness  that  \\ill 
gradually  be  lost  a*  the  tree  increases  with 
age.  Occasionally  this  bitter  principle  ap- 
pears in  the  imported  lemon,  and  it  is  pos- 
sible that  it  is  found  in  foreign  countries 
to  the  same  extent  as  here,  but  that  the 
period  of  picking  and  the  curing  pro- 
cess the  fruit  undergoes  in  the  voyage 
here,  removes  it. 

"THIRD — PERCENTAGE  OF  ACIDITY.— 
When  freedom  from  bitterness  is  attained, 
the  relative  value  of  the  lemon  for  com- 
mercial purposes  will  depend  upon  the 
percentage  of  acid  it  contains.  In  this  re 
spect  the  tests,  as  far  as  we  were  ,able  to 
make  them,  showed  the  superiority  of  the 
California!!  over  the  imported  fruit.  The 
highest  percentage  of  the  imported  Messina 
was  9.65  of  acid,  while  that  of  the  Califor- 
nia Lisbon  reached  10.53,  and  another  of 
{he  same  species  was  10.23,  and  two  of  the 


California  Eurekas  were  respectively 
and  10.43  per  cent. 

44  The  average  percentage  of  acid  in, 
three  tests  made  of  the  imported  lemons 
gave  8. 71  percent.,  while  that  of  nineteen 
tests  of  California  budded  lemons  gave 
9.04  per  cent. 

44  It  is  a  fact  worthy  of  notice  that  the 
fruits  giving  the  highest  percentage  of 
acid  were  specimens  from  the  lomon  bud 
upon  orange  stocks,  showing  the  value  of 
this  stock  for  the  lemon. 

44  From  a  careful  analysis  of  the  forego- 
ing it  will  seem  that  the  California  bud- 
ded lemon,  properly  grown  and  handled,, 
is  the  equal  in  every  respect  of  the  im- 
ported lemon.  Your  committee  is  there- 
fore forced  to  the  conclusion  that  its  want 
of  appreciation  in  the  San  Francisco  mar- 
ket is  due  from  two  causes: 

44  First— Unjust  prejudice  against  Cali- 
fornia lemons  generally. 

''Second — Want  of  care  in  the  producer, 
in  packing  and  handling  the  fruit. 

44  That  the  first is  true  to  some*  extent, 
is  shown  by  repeated  shipments  of  budded 
lemons  from  Riverside  to  the  Denver 
market  during  the  past  winter,  where 
they  brought  ten  dollars  per  box;  two  dol- 
lars per  box  more  than  the  best  imported 
lemons,  while  the  same  varietieties  would 
be  sold  at  San  Francisco  for  two  and  four 
dollars  per  box  lets  than  the  imported 
lemon.  It  is  fair  to  presume  that  the  taste 
of  consumers  in  Denver  is  as  highly  cul- 
tivated in  this  respect  as  that  of  the  same 
class  in  San  Francisco. 

44  Second— That  there  is  deplorable  care- 
lessness in  picking  and  handling  this 
lemon  is  undoubtedly  true,  and  to  this 
cause  may  be  attributed  much  of  the  loss 
that  falls  to  individual  producers,  and  to 
the  trade  generally.  A  prominent  fruit 
grower  of  Riverside  was  in  the  city  of  San, 
Francisco  a  few  weeks  since,  and  saw  in 
the  warehouses  of  one  of  the  largest  com- 
mission merchants  there,  a  large  number 
of  boxes  of  California  lemons.  Upon  ex- 
aimnation  he  found  them  of  all  sizes,  col- 
ors and  shapes,  tumbled  into  the  boxesr 
without  wrapping  or  care  of  any  kind. 
The  result  was  that  they  would  either 
have  to  be  sold  at  a  price  that  would 
hardly  pay  freight  and  commission,  or  be 
stored  for  some  weeks  and  then  sorted 


THE  LEMON,  LIME  AND  CITIION. 


;and  repacked,  at  considerable  cost  to  the 
•owner,  and  possibly  largo  loss  of  fruit. 

"As  JIM  appendix  to  tho  above  report. 
the  committee  would  oiler  the  following: 

"  RKCOM  MKNDA  rioxs. — Discard  all  trees 
tlwt,  after  a  fair  and  repeated  trial,  con- 
tinue to  show  bitterness  of  fruit. 

"  Exercise  unreal  care  in  the  selection  of 
varieties  free  from  biiterness  and  rich  in 
•citric  acid,  from  which  to  bud. 

"  Use  the  Seedling  orange  as  a  stock  up- 
on which  to  bud,  as  the  orange  is  a  hardier 
4iud  hcalthiersiock,  and  the  lemon  budded 
upon  il  is  hardier  than  upon  lemon  stock. 

••  Keep  your  i  fees  in  a  healthy,  vigorous 
condition,  especially  during  the  fruiting 
season. 

''The  Lisbon  and  Eureka  lemons  are  so 
far  the  most  promising  varieties,  being 
productive;,  early  bearing,  of  medium  si/e, 
lineappearanee,  sweet  rindaud  rich  in  acid. 

"As  the  lemon  can  be  kept  from  six  to 
oil-lit  months  after  picking,  if  properly 
handled  and  cured,  and  will  improve 
rather  than  lose  in  quality  during  that 
lime,  pick  the  fruit  before  it  i.s  ripe,  or 


rather  while  a  portion  of  the  rind  isu-reeu; 
store  it  for  six  or  eight  weeks  in  a  cool, 
dry  room,  thoroughly  ventilated,  placing 
the  fruit  in  thin  layers  on  shelves  or  hur- 
dles, where  it  can  readily  be  examined 
and  picked  over  if  necessary. 

"Avoid  moisture  during  the  process  of 
curing.  Sort  when  ready  for  maket,  mak- 
ing at  least  two  si xos  or  qualities, and  pack 
none  but  perfect  specimens,  wrapping 
neatly  in  tissue  paper,  with  the  name  of 
the  variety  and  producer  printed  upon  the 
"wrapper,  as  a  guarantee  of  good  faith  in 
the  shipper. 

"With  those  rules  fully  observed,  wo 
see  no  reason  to  doubt  the  prompt  appre- 
ciation of  California  budded  lemons  in 
every  market,  and  a  complete  check  given 
to  the  importation  of  foreign  lemons  into 
California. 

I,.  M.  HOT/T,  1 

THOS.  HKNDUY,      j 
11.  J.  RI-PJSILI.,      I  Corn, 
G.  W.  GAKCKLON, 
L.  G,  WAITK. 

"W.  X.  MA^N,  Sec'y." 


CHAPTER  III. 


LEMONS—  PROPAGATION  AND  CULTURE.. 

has  proven  an  unreliable  stock  upon 
which  to  bud  the  orange,  as  it  exercises 
enough  influence  through  the  budded 
growth  fco  render  the  fruit  a  bad  orange 
and  not  a  good  lemon.  The  lemon  stock 
in  mature  trees  is  (mite  susceptible  to 
gum  disease,  especially  if  much  irrigated. 
There  is  then  no  call  for  propagating  lem- 
on seed,  except  in  the  way  of  experiment. 
What  has  been  said  about  rearing  bud- 


Lemons are  propagated  in  the  same 
manner  as  oranges.  It  is  unnecessary, 
theicfore,  to  review  the  subject  of  propa- 
gati'»  in  this  connection. 

From  what  has  been  said  in  the  (weced- 
ing  chapter,  the  inference  is  plain  that 
there  is  little  demand  for  seedling  lemon 
trees.  The  only  lemons  worth  cultivat- 
ing are  the  choice  budded  varieties.  Ex- 
perience has  demonstrated  that  the  or- 


is  a 


hardier  stock   than  the  lemon,     (led  orange  trees  in  nursery  applies  equal- 


and  as  it  is  believed  that  there  is  no  dete- 
rioration of  fruit  by  this  conjunction,  it 
has  come  to  be  a  universal  practice  to 
grow  lemons  on  orange  roots.*  The  lemon 


ly  to  budded  lemons,  and  almost  the  same 
may  be  repeated  through  the  whole  cate- 
gorv  of  planting  the  trees,  cultivating, 
priming,  freeing  from  insects,  manuring 
and  rejuvenating  when  worn  out.  There 
is  in  fact,  the  greatest  similarity  between 
these  twin  sisters  in  the  citrus  family— 


*NOTK. — Dr.  O.  H.  Congar,  of  Pasadena,  a  recog- 
nized authority  on  ciirus  culture,  takes  issue  with 
this  commonly  accepted  theory,  claiming  lint  the 
lemon  deteriorates  in  budding  upon  orange  stock. 
He  holds  that  enough  of  the  orange  characteristics 
are  incorporated  to  re«der  the  lemons  of  an  ungain-  the  orange  and  lemon.  A  novice  would 

possfbie^hat  further  'JVarsTof  'experiment  'may  scarcely  detect  the  difference  in  si/e  and 
d'-Tiionslrate  that  Dr.  Congar  is  measurably  correct.  s|jape  of  tree,  foliage  and  bloom,  although 
and.  if  ST.  lemons  will  he  budded  on  lemon  stocks 

only,  ami  omnyes  on  orange  stocks.  there  is  an  appreciable  difference  on  close 


86 


THE  LEMON,  LIME  AND  CITRON. 


inspection.    The  wide  divergence  is  man- 
ifested only   in  the  fruit,  and  these  are 
probably   not  the  only  twin  sisters  that 
have  proven  strangely  sweet  and  sour. 
In  pruning  lemins  some  of  our  most  ex- 


perienced cultivators  favor  a  low  growth, 
as  they  think  that  most  nearly  conforms 
to  the  natural  habit  of  the  tree.  This  was 
adverted  to  in  the  chapter  on  pruning. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

BUDDED  VARIETIES. 


As  the  budded  varieties  of  lemons  are 
alone  commended,  it  is  in  order  to  give  a 
list  of  the  kinds  grown  and  a  description 
of  each.  The  list  is  scant,  but  it  comprises 
some  excellent  varieties,  any  of  which 
would  redeem  the  character  of  lemon  cul- 
ture in  California. 

SWEET  RIND.— This  was  the  first  im- 
proved variety  originated  here  as  a  seed- 
ling. It  is  a  fair  lemon,  but  is  excelled  by 
others  since  introduced. 

THE  LISBON.— This  was  the  first  foreign 
variety  introduced,coming  from  Australia. 
The  tree  is  a  strong  grower,  quite  thorny, 
not  so  early  in  bearing  as  other  varieties. 
Fruit  oblong,  symmetrical,  strong  acid; 
more  or  less  seeds;  rind  sweet  and  thin. 
Acid  rarely  goes  below  7  per  cent,  and  fre- 
quently exceeds  that  standard. 

THE  EUREKA. — This  is  a  chance  seed- 
ling originated  by  Mr.  U.  R.  Workman 
and  introduced  by  Mr.  T.  A.  Garey  in 
1877-8.  The  tree  makes  a  vigorous  growth, 
and  is  thornless.  Fruit  sharply  pointed 
at  blossom  end,  fair  in  texture,  seedless 
and  sweet  rind;  acid  the  best. 

GENOA. — Imported    from    Italy.      Tree 


thornless  and  an  earl y  beaier.  Fruit 
good  in  all  respects  except  acidity.  Tests 
show  the  amount  of  acid  to  vary  so  much 
that  the  fruit  is  not  looked  upon  with 
favor. 

BONNIE  BRAE.— This  was  originated  by 
Mr.  H.  M.  Higgins,  of  San  Diego,  from 
imported  seed.  I  consider  it  the  hand- 
somest lemon  grown  in  California.  (See 
full  description  in  succeeding  chapter.) 
Tree  of  average  size,  a  strong  grower, 
quite  thorny.  Fruit  symmetrical,  texture 
the  finest,  rind  thin,  almost  seedless,  acid 
fair,  and  the  juice  possesses  a  peculiar 
rich  flavor. 

OLIVIA. — Originated  by  Mr.  Geo.  C. 
Swan,  of  San  Diego.  Tree  somewhat 
thorny,  good  bearer.  The  fruit  is  excel- 
lent, test  showing  8.08  per  cent  citric  acid. 

GARCELON'S  KNOBBY. — A  variety  origi- 
nated by  Mr.  G.  W.  Garcelon,  of  River- 
side, and  not  yet  introduced  for  general 
propagation.  The  fruit  is  small  and  pe- 
culiarly marked  with  a  long  spike  at  the 
blossotrf* end.  This  variety  possesses  ad- 
vantages which  may  make  it  a  favorite  at 
no  distant  day. 


CHAPTER  V. 

PREPARING  FOR  MARKLT. 


The  same  general  principles  which  ap- 
ply to  the  handling  of  oranges  apply 
to  lemons.  The  fruit  should  be  pick- 
ed when  dry  and  stored  for  a  period 
during  which  it  undergoes  a  sweating  and 
curing  process.  In  this  way  the  excess  of 
moisture  is  evaporated  from  the  skin,  ren- 


dering it  soft  and  pliable,  with  a  texture 
somewhat  like  a  kid  glove.  Lemons 
cured  in  this  \va,y  will  keep  a  long  time, 
and  are  not  susceptible  to  decay  in  transit 
as  the  result  of  close  packing  or  bruising. 
There  is  no  secret  about  the  curing  pro- 
cess. The  lemons  are  merely  spread  out 


THE  LEMON,  LIME  AND  CITKON. 


87 


in  thin  layers  in  a  dry,  cool,  well  ventilat- 
ed place  and  left  anywhere  from  ten  days 
to  ten  weeks,  as  suits  the  convenience  of 
the  grower.  As  the  lemon  ripens  in  mid- 
winter, whtn  there  is  litlle  call  for  acid 
fruits,  the  advantages  usually  sought  by 
the  producer  is  to  keep  his  fruit  as  long  as 
possible  before  putting  it  upon  the  market. 
In  Florida,  where  the  atmosphere  is 
very  humid,  lemon  producers  have  found 
it  an  advantage  in  (Miring  their  fruit,  to 
fumigate  it  with  sulphur  to  destroy  the 
germs  of  fungus.  The  process  has  been 
tried  here,  but  without  satisfactory  re- 


sults. In  our  dry  climate  there  is  proba- 
bly no  better  way  to  cure  lemons  than  to- 
arrange  them  so  that  they  have  shade  arid 
a  plenty  of  air.  Dr.  Cougar  advises- 
throwing  the  lemons  in  piles  under  the 
trees  and  leaving  them  there  ten  days  or 
two  weeks,  when  he  says  they  will  be 
most  perfectly  cured. 

The  most  advanced  shippers  grade  their 
lemons  carefully  and  wrap  them  in  papers 
for  shipment.  The  packing  boxes  em- 
ployed are  the  same  as  those  used  for  or- 
anges. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


THE  BONNIE  BRAE  LEMON. 


I  wish  to  call  this  variety  into  promi- 
nent notice,  both  because  I  believe  it  to  be 
one  of  the  finest  lemons  yet  grown  in  Cal- 
ifornia, and  because  it  is  a  stranger  and 
needs  an  introduction.  My  attention  was 
first  called  to  the  Bonnie  Brae  by  a  plate 
of  the  fruit  on  exhibition  in  the  Los  An- 
geles Citrus  Fair  of  1880.  So  different 
was  this  fruit  from  other  varieties  of  lem- 
ons on  display  that  people  were  at  a  loss 
whether  to  class  it  as  a  lemon  at  all.  The 
cut  presented  herewith,  showing  a  group 
of  Bonnie  Brae  lemons  on  a  stem,  is  a  cor- 
rect representation,  taken  from  life.  The 
fruit  is  from  medium  to  small,  somewhat 
oblong,  more  abrupt^  rounded  at  the 
ends  than  ordinary  lemons  and  possess- 
ing only  slight  protuberances  at  the  blos- 
som and  stem  ends.  The  texture  of  the 
skin  is  as  fine  as  a  kid  glove,  and  when 
the  lemon  has  seasoned  a  few  days  slight 
longitudinal  corrugations  appear  as  shown 
jn  the  picture.  The  fruit  is  absolutely 
beautiful  to  look  upon. 

Various  and  repeated  examinations  have 
convinced  me  that  it  is  as  good  as  it  is 
handsome. 

The  Bonnie  Brae  was  originated  by  Mr. 
H.  M.  Higgins,  of  San  Diego,  from  for- 
eign seed.  He  contented  himself,  it  seems, 
with  budding  a  nursery  of  one  hundred 
trees  from  the  original  stock,  making  no 
great  effort  to  introduce  the  variety  to 
public  attention.  In  1883  I  purchased 
three  of  the  trees  from  him,  but,  being 


poorly  packed  for  shipment  and  delayed! 
on  the  road,  they  were  dried  out  and  dead 
when  they  reached  me.  I  made  an  effort 
to  obtain  others,  but  was  too  late,  as  Mr_ 
Higgins  had  parted  with  his  entire  re- 
maining stock,  sending  them  to  his  broth- 
er in  Lower  California.  In  lieu  of  trees r 
however,  he  forwarded  to  me  some  buds- 
from  the  original  tree.  These  I  passed 
over  to  a  nurseryman  and  had  them  in- 
serted in  orange  slock.  I  was  fortunate 
enough  to  obtain  therefrom  one  hundred 
and  twelve  thrifty  trees,  which  are  now 
growing  on  my  place. 

Since  my  correspondence  with  Mr.  Jlig- 
gins  began,  I  have  obtained  two  samples- 
of  these  lemons — one  in  1883  and  one  in 
1884 — and  have  subjected  them  to  ever\r 
test  I  could  devise,  with  the  most  satis- 
factory results.  The  average  size  of  the 
fruit  is  about  eight  inches  in  longitudinal 
circumference.  The  most  notable  feat  urea 
are  its  fine-textured  skin,  its  bright  color,, 
and  its  unusual  weight.  Divided  with  a, 
knife,  the  texture  within  is  found  to  ful- 
fill the  promise  of  the  exterior.  The  rind 
is  not  above  a  sixteenth  of  an  inch  in 
thickness,  and  when  the  lemon  has  been 
allowed  to  season  some  time  it  reduces  to 
a  mere  wafer.  The  pulp  is  tender,  melt- 
ing and  brimful  of  juice  of  fair  acid  char- 
acter and  rich  flavor.  The  seeds,  if  anyr 
are  few  and  small.  In  both  years  that  I 
tested  the  fruit  I  laid  several  lemons  away 
in  a  drawer,  where  they  remained  up- 


THE  LEMON,  LIME  AND   CITEON. 


M-ards  of  eight  months.  Instead  of  rot- 
ting, they  dried  down  to  veritable  lemon 
anummies,  and  the  dessicated  pulp  still 
;eft  a  -sharp  acid  taste  on  the  tongue. 
This  experiment  demonstrated  to  my 
satisfaction  the  keeping  qualities  of  the 
lemon. 


hundred  Bonnie  Brae.  Mr.  Higgins  ob- 
tained his  stock  from  the  seeds  of  rotten 
lemons,  all  the  best  foreign  varieties,  hav- 
ing been  saved  and  shipped  to  him  by  a 
fruit  dealer  in  San  Francises.  The  Sicily 
lemons  (we  use  the  term  in  contradistinc- 
tion to  Bonnie  Brae)  are  generally  large, 


GROUP   OF   BONNIE   BRAK    I/KM  ON  S. 


In  answer  to  an  inquiry  from  me  as  to 
t .hi>  origin  of  the  Bonnie  Brae,  Mr.  Ilig- 
irins  wrote,  under  date  of  August  1-lth, 
1884,  as  follows: 

"  I  saved  the  seed  of  the  Sicily  lemon, 
and  from  thai  seed  I  obtained  all  varieties, 
from  the  commonest  citron  up  to  this  fine 
lemon,  which  we  named  after  the  place, 
*  Bonnie  Rrae.'  You  cannot  tell  the  tre« 
by  its  looks  from  any  other  lemon  tree 
in  the  grove.  It  is  not  a  lime  in  any  sense 
<.f  the  word." 

In  tin-  San  Diogo  Union  of  March,  1882, 
I  find  quite  a  full  description  of  Mr. 
Higgins's  farm,  in  which  the  following 
occurs: 

"The  lemon  trees  number  about  four 
hundred— three  hundred  Sicily  and  one 


thin  skinned  and  juicy,  and  of  a  line  flavor. 
But  the  Bonnie  Brae  is  superfine.  There 
is  as  much  difference  beween  it  and  the 
ordinary  lemon  as  there  is  between  a  com- 
mon bronco  and  a  thoroughbred  horse. 
Mr.  Iliggins  ran  give  no  account  of  this 
superior  variety  beyond  the  fact  that  the 
fruit  first  appeared  on  a  solitary  tree  in  his 
orchard.  This  lemon  is  more  oblong  than 
the  ordinary  variety,  has  a  smoother,  thin- 
ner skin,  is  seedless,  has  a  larger  percent- 
age of  juice  and  a  richer  flavor.  This  re- 
markable lemon  is  called  Bonnie  Brae  by 
M  r.  1 1  iggins,  after  the  name  of  his  orchard 
homo.  Such  a  fine  specimen  of  the  citrus 
family  has  never  been  produced  in  any  of 
the  semi-tropic  orchards  of  the  world.  It 
is  an  original  product  of  San  Diego  conn- 


THE  LEMON,  LIME  AND   CITRON. 


tv.  an<1  testifies  unmistakably  to  the  su- 
periority of  the  climate  and  soil  of  this 
locality.  The  orchard  now  contains  quite 
a  number  of  trees  of  ihe  Itonnic  Brae  va- 


riety, budded  on  orange  stock.  There  i 
no  tendency  to  reversion,  but,  on  the  oth 
er  hand,  the  fruit  goes  0)1  steadily  im 
proving." 


CHAPTFR  VII. 

THE  LIME  AND  OTHER  CITRUS  FRUITS. 


The  If  me  grows  in  Southern  California 
\vith  ihe  same  culture  as  the  orange  and' 
lemon.  It  is  a  d\\arf  tree  or  shrub,  ac- 
cording to  training,  and  bears  a  small  fruit 
about  one-half  or  one-third  the  si/e  of  a 
lemon,  and  strongly  acid. 

The  lime  industry  in  California — if  it 
may  be  thus  dignified — is  in  xtvlv  quo. 
Some  years  ago  these  trees  were  planted 
to  a  considerable  extent,  but  they  proved 
very  susceptible  to  frost  and  were  mostly 
killed  out.  A  grove  of  some  size  is  to  be 
found  at  the  Sierra  Mad  re  A" ilia  on  the 
mesa,  at  an  elevation  of  eighteen  hundred 
feet  above  sea  level.  Here,  being  practi- 
cally free  from  frost,  the  trees  flourish  and 
bear  well. 

No  systematic  effort  b&0  ever  been  mado 
to  improve  the  quality  "of  limes  grown 
here.  The  Mexican  product  is  superior  to 
ours,  and  being  imported  in  large  quanti- 
ties, and  at  low  prices,  practically  drives 
California  limes  out  of  the  San  Francisco 
market.  Enough  of  the  fruit  is  produced 
in  Southern  California  to  .supply  local  re- 
quirements, but  there  is  at  present  no 
stimulus  for  further  plantations. 

Some  })<  ople  align  their  places  with 
lime  trees  which  they  trim  close  for  a 
hedge.  Thus  shortened  in  the  limbs 
thicken,  making  the  foliage  dense,  and 
forming  altogether  a  very  pretty  hedge- 
row. If,  in  a  severe  winter,  they  chance 


to  be  stricken  by  frost,  the  lateral  branches 
may  be  cut  away,  when  the  stocks  will 
put  forth  new  growth  and,  in  a  year,  the 
hedge  is  itself  again. 

Citrons  are  cultivated  to  a  less  extent 
even  than  limes.  I  may  say,  in  fact,  that 
they  are  only  grown  as  curiosities.  The 
same  may  be  said  of  the  Pumalo  orange 
and  Chinese  lemon.  All  of  these  fruits 
are  very  laige  and  thick  skinned.  When 
utilized,  the  rind  is  the  valuable  part,  the 
pj.ilp  being  either  insipid  or  bitter.  We 
are  a'll  familiar  with  the  citron  of  com- 
merce, which  vonsists  of  the  rind  of  the 
citron  fruit,  deprived  of  its  essential  oil 
and  cured  as  a  preserve  or  confection. 

A  few  years  ago  a  firm  in  San  Francisco 
attempted  tho  preparation  of  citron  for 
the  trade,  and,  to  this  end,  purcnasea  an 
the  citrons,  Chinese  lemons,  and  Pumalo 
oranges  that  were  available  in  our  section 
of  the  State.  But  we  heard  nothing  fur- 
ther from  the  venture,  and  it  was  proba- 
bly a  failure.  There  is  no  question,  how- 
ever, but  that,  with  the  proper  process, 
the  citron  of  commerce  might  be  manu- 
factured from  our  fruit. 

Meanwhile,  the  Pumalo  and  its  congen- 
ers, when  allowed  growing  space,  continue 
to  load  themselves  down  with  fruit  as 
large  as  foot  balls.  They  are  matters  of 
wonder,  and  that  is  all.  The  best  citrus 
goods  are  done  up  in  smaller  parcels. 


APPENDIX. 

INSECTS  INJURIOUS  TO  CITRUS  TREES, 

[FROM   THE   WORK   OF   HON.    MATTHEW^COOKE.] 

AND  How  TO  COMBAT!THEM, 


94 


INSECTS  INJURIOUS  TO  CITRUS  TREES. 


the  insect  has  reached  maturity,  it  assumes 
different  shades  of  color  —  first,  greenish 
brown;  half  grown,  reddish  brown,  and 
at  maturity,  dark  brown. 

It  is  doubtful  if  there  are  more  than  one 
brood  in  each  year.  The  first  brood  is 
hatched,  in  Sacramento,  about  the  first  of 
May,  but  do  not  attempt  to  leave  from  un- 
der the  scale  until  the  twelfth,  yet  it  is 
very  common  to  find  thefemales  of  this 
species  depositing  their  eggs  late  in  Sep- 
tember, but  whether  they  are  of  the  spring 
brood  I  am  not  prepared  to  say. 

In  relation  to  the  length  of  time  the  le- 
caniums  are  capable  of  moving  from  one 
place  to  another,  Mons.  V.  Signoret  writes: 
"  Before  pregnancy  they  have  the  power 
to  move,  if  necessary." 

THE  RED  SCALE.      (CAL.) 

(Aspidiotus  aurentii — Maskell.)  Synonym, 

Aspidiotus    citrii  —  Comstock.      Order, 

Hemiptera;     sub  -  order,     Homoptcru; 

family,  Coccidce. 

[A  circular  reddish  scale  insect,  infest- 
ing the  citrus  trees,  and  has  been  found 
on  grape-vines  and  the  foliage  of  walnut 
trees.] 

The  red  scale  infests  some  of  the  citrus 
groves  of  Southern  California,  and  orange 
trees  in  Sacramento  and  Marysville.  It 
has  also  been  found  on  grape-vines  and 
on  the  foliage  of  walnut  trees,  but  I  do 
not  think  that  any  damage  will  be  done  to 
these  plants  by  this  pest.  As  the  walnut 
sheds  its  foliage  annually,  the  insects  are 
likely  to  be  destroyed;  and  those  which  I 
have  examined  on  the  grape-vines  in  the 
month  of  September,  and  which  appeared 
to  be  in  a  healthy  condition,  were  dead 
and  shrunken  when  I  examined  the  vines 
in  the  month  of  February  following. 

It  is  generally  conceded  that  this  species 
is  an  importation  from  Australia. 

NATURAL  HISTORY.  —  Female  scale, 
nearly  transparent,  circular,  of  a  light- 
grayish  color,  and  measures  from  one  lino 
to  one  and  one-quarter  lines  in  diameter; 
exuviae  or  cast  skin  in  center,  yellowish ; 
second  larval  skin  easily  distinguished. 

Male  scale,  a  little  darker  in  color  and 
smaller  than  the  female  scale;  form,  elon- 
gated; exuvite  nearest  the  anterior  end. 

Eggs.—li  is  thought  by  some  writers 


that  the  females  of  this  species  are  vivipa- 
rous. I  have  watched  the  female  insect 
ovipositing,  and  immediately  examined 
the  egg  or  sack  under  a  microscope,  using 
a  high  power,  and  could  not  detect  any 
appendages;  however,  in  twenty  -  four 
hours  I  noticed  the  presence  of  antennee 
and  legs.  The  insect  produces  from  two 
to  four  of  these  eggs  or  sacks  in  twenty- 
four  hours,  and  the  number  produced  by 
each  female  is  from  twenty  to  forty-three; 
the  latter  is  the  highest  number  I  have 
found. 

In  the  month  of  September,  1882, 1  found 
a  lemon  at  an  orchard  in  Los  Angeles 
county  on  which  the  larva*  of  thirty-nine 
male  scale  insects  had  located  around  the 
stem  of  the  fruit,  and  as  there  was  only 
one  matured  scale  on  the  lemon  this  was 
evidently  the  number  produced  by  one 
female.  Larvacolor,  bright  yellow;  form, 
ovoid;  length,  one-eightieth  of  an  inch; 
antennae,  six  jointed;  anal  setae,  present. 

Female:  color,  light  or  primrose  yellow- 
when  the  scale  is  formed,  but  as  it  reaches 
maturity  it  becomes  a  brownish  yellow. 
The  formation  of  the  body  is  such  that 
under  the  scale,  when  examined  with  a 
lense,  its  appearance  is  that  of  a  broken 
ring,  but  when  ovipositing  the  posterior 
end  of  the  abdomen  extends  beyond  the 
circular  line  of  the  body.  The  color  of 
the  natural  insect  is  shown  through  the 
nearly  transparent  scale  from  which  it  de- 
rives its  common  name — Red  Scale. 

Male:  color  of  body, amber  yellow,  with 
dark  marking  on  thorax;  eyes,  black. 

Female  red  scale  insect:  color,  yellow. 

The  young  larvae  can  be  found  at  all  sea- 
sons of  the  year,  and  there  are  probabty 
four  or  five  broods  in  each  year. 

THE  RED  SCALE  OF  FLORIDA. 

(Aspidiotus  flcns— Riley,  MSS.;  Chr}/*<»n- 
phalus  ficus—  Riley,  MSS.    Ashmead.) 
Order,  Hemiptera;   sub-order,  Homop- 
tera;  family,  Coccidce. 
[A  species  of  scale  insect  infesting  the 
branches,  foliage  and  fruit  of  orange  trees 
in  Florida  and  the  Island  of  Cuba.] 

Professor  Comstock  describes  this  spe- 
cies as  follows:  "  Female  Scale. —  Color, 
the  part  of  the  scale  covering  the  second 
skin  is  a  light  reddish  brown;  the  remain- 
der of  the  scale  is  much  darker,  varying 


INSECTS  INJURIOUS  TO  CITRUS  TREES. 


95 


from  a  dark  reddish  brown  to  black,  ex- 
cepting the  thin  part  of  the  margin,  which 
is  gray;  exuviae  nearly  central,  whitish  in 
fresh  specimens;  form,  circular,  one  line 
in  diameter.  Male  Scale.  —  The  scale  of 
the  male  is  about  one-fourth  as  large  as 
that  of  the  female;  the  posterior  side  is 
prolonged  into  a  thin  flap,  which  is  gray 
in  color.  (See  United  States  Agricultural 
Report,  1880;  and  Ashmead  on  '  Orange 
Insects,'  1880." 

THE  LEMON-PEEL.  SCALE.      (OAL.) 

^Axjtidiofuft  nerii—  Bouche.)    Order,  Hem- 
iptera;   sub-oi'der,  Homoptera;   family, 


[A  whitish  circular  scale  insect,  infest- 
ing the  lemon,  plum,  cherry  and  currant; 
also  the  oleander,  acacia,  magnolia,  etc.] 

This  species  has  been  known  to*  sci- 
entists as  the  "  Oleander  Scale,"  from 
which  it  derives  its  specific  name,  nerii. 
Within  the  last  four  or  five  years  it  has 
been  found  on  the  lemon,  plum,  cherry 
and  currant;  also  on  the  acacia,  magnolia, 
etc.  It  seems  to  prefer  the  fruit  of  the 
lemon,  and  in  many  cases  infests  the  skin 
or  peel  to  such  an  extent  as  to  reduce  its 
market  value.  California  cannot  claim  a 
sol*  proprietary  right  to  this  pest,  as  lem- 
ons imported  from  Europe  are  often  offer- 
ed for  sale  in  our  market  wrhich  are  seri- 
ously infested  by  A.  nerii. 

NATURAL  HISTORY.—  The  female  scale  is 
of  a  whitish  color,  and  nearly  circular, 
measures  one  line  in  diameter;  exuviae 
or  cast  skin,  yellowish,  and  near  the  cen- 
ter. Male  scale,  white,  smaller  and  not 
as  circular  as  that  of  the  female.  Egg, 
light  yellow.  Larva,  yellowish  white; 
length,  one-eighty-fifth  of  an  inch.  Fe- 
male, light  yellow,  with  darker  blotches; 
body,  circular;  abdominal  segments  ap- 
pear as  a  pointed  projection  at  one  part  of 
the  circle.  Male  insect,  winged;  body, 
yellowish,  with  dark  markings.  The 
lemon-peel  scale  insect  closely  resembles 
the  red  seal,  and  it  is  only  by  the  differ- 
ence in  color  that  a  person  not  thoroughly 
acquainted  with  the  respective  species  can 
distinguish  them. 

PEROANDE'S  ORANGE  SCALE.    (CAL.) 
(  Parlatoria  pergandn—Comstock.)  Order, 
Jlrmiptera;     sub  -  order,     Homoptera; 
family,  Coccidce. 


[A  scale  insect  infesting  the  branches, 
foliage  and  fruit  of  citrus  trees.] 

I  have  found  this  species  on  the  orange 
tree  in  Sacramento,  but  have  not  found  it 
in  any  other  part  of  the  State. 

The  female  scale  is  somewhat  elongated 
in  form,  but  nearly  circular,  the  exuviae 
at  one  side  of  the  center;  color,  grayish; 
exuvhe  yellow,  and  generally  oval  in 
shape. 

The  scale  of  the  male  is  elongated  and 
narrow;  color,  dirty  white,  exuviae  at  the 
anterior  end.  Female  — color,  purplish, 
with  posterior  end  of  the  body  yellowish, 
and  is  nearly  as  broad  as  long.  Eggs — 
color,  purplish;  elongated;  from  nine  to 
twenty  found  under  each  female  scale. 
Larva  — length,  nearly  one-nineteenth  of 
an  inch;  color,  purplish.  Male  — color, 
dark  purplish. 

THE  CITRUS  LEAF  AND  FRUIT  SCALE. 

(Mytilaspis  citricola  —  Packard.)  Syno- 
nym, Aspidiotus  citricola  —  Packard. 
Order,  Himiptera;  sub-order,  Homop- 
tera; family,  Coccidce. 
[An  elongated,  slightly  curved  scale  in- 
sect, infesting  citrus  trees.] 

This  species  of  scale  insect  has  not  been 
found  on  any  of  the  citrus  trees  in  this 
State,  so  far  as  I  know,  but  it  will  be 
strange  if  it  is  not  found  in  the  near  fu- 
ture. It  is  not  a  rare  occurrence  to  find  it 
on  oranges,  etc.,  which  are  imported  from 
Europe,  Australia  and  Tahiti,  and  offered 
for  sale  on  fruit  stands  throughout  the 
State. 

The  scale  of  this  species  is  similar  in 
form  and  appearance  to  that  of  the  oyster 
shell  bark-louse,  excepting  that  it  may  be 
a  little  wider  at  the  posterior  end.  Length 
of  female  scale,  about  one  and  one-half 
lines.  The  male  scale  is  similar  to  other 
species  of  Mytilaspis  in  having  a  hinge- 
like  joint,  posterior  to  the  middle  of  the 
scale,  so  that  by  lifting  the  posterior  part 
up  the  perfect  insect  can  emerge. 

THE  SOFT  ORANGE  SCALE.      (CAL.) 

(Lecanium  hesperidum— Linnaeus.)  Order, 
Hemiptera;  sub-order,  Homoptera;  fam- 
ily, Coccidce. 

[An  oval  flattened  scale  insect,  infesting 
citrus  trees,  especially  the  orange.] 

The  soft  orange  scale  is  found  in  Califor- 
nia in  nearly  every  locality  where  citrus 
trees  are  grown.  It  infests  the  wood,  foli- 


96 


INSECTS  INJURIOUS  TO  CITRUS  TREES. 


age  and  fruit.  This,  or  a  closely-allied 
species,  is  found  on  plants  in  hot-houses. 
Professor  Comstock,  in  his  Entomolog- 
ical Report  of  1880,  writes:  "The  male  of 
this  species  has  never  been  found,  al- 
though it  has  been  studied  from  the  lime 
of  Linnaeus  down." 

In  September,  1880,  I  prepared  a  dry 
mounting  of  a  specimen  of  Lecanium  hes- 
peridum  for  microscopic  use  at  the  State 
Fair  of  "that  year.  Early  in  the  week  a 
small  insect  was  noticed  coming  from  un- 
der a  specimen  beneath  the  glass,  and 
finally  released  itself,  it  proved  to  be  a 
male  scale  insect. 

NATURAL,  HISTORY. — Female — a  broad, 
oval  scale,  measuring  from  one  and  one- 
quarter  to  one  and  one-half  lines  in  length, 
widest  at  the  posterior  end;  color,  dark 
brown  on  top,  and  a  lighter  brown  sur- 
rounding the  margin.  Two  indentations 
on  the  margin  on  each  side,  and  a  large 
indentation  on  the  posterior  end.  It  has 
powers  of  locomotion  similar  to  those  of 
other  LccnuiidKN.  I  have  not  found  the 
egg  of  this  species,  but  have  found  large 
numbers  of  the  young  larvae  —  as  many 
as  forty -five  under  one  specimen.  The 
young  larva;  appear  about  the  first  of 
May  in  the  vicinitj'of  Sacramento.  Larva 
length,  one-eighty-rifth  of  an  inch;  color, 
dark  or  dirty  yellow;  antenna*,  six  jointed 
(some  specimens  appear  to  have  seven 
joints);  two  anal  setae. 

DESCRIPTION.  —  Length  of  body,  one- 
seventy-second  of  an  inch;  from  front  of 
head  to  apex  of  wing,  one-twenty-fourth 
of  an  inch;  posterior  stylets,  one-forty- 
fifth  of  an  inch,  or  one-half  the  length  of 
body;  color,  body,  immaculate  golden 
yellow;  eyes,  dark  or  black;  antenna; 
(from  the  peculiar  position  in  which  they 
are  placed  I  can  only  count  seven  joints), 
golden  yellow  and  hairy;  legs,  golden 
yellow. 

As  it  did  not  agree  with  the  description 
of  any  of  the  male  scale  insects  I  had  read 
of,  or  specimen  males  of  aurantii,  pci 
cioaus,  persece,  rapax,  roseae,  or  purchast . 
nay  possession,  I  could  only  imagine  that 
it  was  the  male  of  L.  ty    yeridum  (be  what 
it  may,  it  came  from  u..    }r  the  L.  hesper- 
idum  scale),  and  fortunately  I  preserved 
the  mounting. 


COTTONY  CUSHION  SCALE.      (CAL.) 

(fcerya  purchasi—  Mask  ell.)  Order,  He- 
miptera;  sub-order,  Homoptera;  family, 
Coecidce. 

[A  white,  cushion-like  scale  insect,  feed- 
ing upon  citrus  trees,  deciduous  fruit  trees, 
forest  trees  and  on  some  varieties  of  veg- 
etables.] 

This  species  of  scale  insect  I  consider 
the  most  dangerous  of  any  that  infests 
fruit  and  other  trees  in  California,  as  it 
may  be  said  to  be  a  general  feeder.  It  is 
found  on  all  varieties  of  citrus  trees,  de- 
ciduous fruit  trees,  on  many  varieties  of 
ornamental  trees,  forest  trees  and  shrubs; 
also  on  some  varieties  of  vegetables.  The 
apparent  color  of  this  scale  insect  at  first 
sight  is  white,  with  a  dark  colored  head. 
On  examination  it  is  found  that  the  part 
indicated  by  the  dark  color  is  the  insect, 
and  the  white  portion  a  bag  or  case  spun 
by  the  insect  to  conceal  her  oggs  when  de- 
posited. 

The  females,  after  ovipositing  (the  egg 
case  included),  differ  in  size,  some  meas- 
uring six  lines  in  length  ;  but  the  general 
length  is  from  three  to  four  lines;  width, 
one  and  one-half  to  three  lines,  and  slight- 
ly tapering  toward  the  posterior  end.  %Cach 
female  deposits  from  two  hundred  to  rive 
hundred  eggs.  In  one  instance  1  counted 
seven  hundred  and  three.  The  egg's  are 
oblong-ovate  in  form,  and  of  a  pale  red 
color. 

Larva  — color,  body  red;  antemi;»,  six 
jointed,  clubbed  at  the  apex,  on  which  are 
six  long  hairs — color,  smoky  black;  legs, 
smoky  black  (the  joints  of  the  antennae 
and  legs  are  lighter  in  color  than  the  bal- 
ance); there  are  six  long  anal  hairs;  the 
margin  of  the  body  and  back  is  also  dot- 
ted with  hairs;  length  of  body,  one-thirty- 
fifth  of  an  inch. 

The  female  insect  during  her  growth 
assumes  a  variety  of  colors;  principally 
yellowish  red,  with  irregular  blotches  of 
white,  green  and  yellow.  At  full  growth, 
and  before  spinning  egg  case,  she  is  ovoid 
in  form.  The  hairs  on  the  anal  margin 
and  sides  are  used  as  spinarets,  exuding 
•a.  cottony-like  secretion,  of  which  the  egg 
case  is  formed.  During  her  growth,  and 
before  beginning  to  spin  her  egg  case,  the 
females  exude  a  honeydew,  which  forms 
a  black  smut  on  the  branches  and  foliage, 


INSECTS  INJUEIOUS  TO  CITRUS  TKEES. 


97 


as  described  under  the  head,  Black  Scale. 
Male  insect,  winged;  color,  thorax  and 
body  dark  brown,  abdomen  red;  antenna? 
dark  colored,  with  light  brown  hairs  ex- 
tending from  each  joint;  wings  brown, 
irridescent. 

TREATMENT  FOR  SCALE  BUGS. 
[From  the  Bulletin  of  the  Los  Angeles  Horticultu- 
ral Commission.] 

*  In  all  cases  of  infection  from  the  white 
cottony  cushion  scale,  it  is  recommended 
that  the  trees  be  thoroughly  sprayed  pre- 
vious to  any  pruning.  This  plan  is  deem- 
ed the  better  one,  because  the  danger  of 
scattering  and  spreading  the  insects  is 
much  less  than  in  the  practice  of  cutting 
back  or  thinning  out  the  trees  previous  to 
medicating.  If  properly  and  thoroughly 
used  this  first  application  will  kill  a  con- 
siderable proportion  of  the  bugs,  many  of 
which,  if  the  trees  were  first  pruned  or 
cut  back,  notwithstanding  the  use  of  great 
caution  and  care  in  removing  brush  to  the 
fire,  would  fall  to  the  ground  and  seek 
adjoining  trees  or  plants  for  food  and 
breeding  spots. 

Use  for  spraying  white  scale,  35  pounds 
whale-oil  soap,  4  gallons  coal  oil  (110  fire 
test),  to  every  100  gallons  of  water.  The 
coal  oil  must  be  made  into  an  emulsion 
with  the  soap  first,  then  add  balance  of 
soap  and  water,  in  the  following  manner: 
First,  boil  the  soap  in  as  little  water  as  pos- 
sible, as  the  soap  must  be  thick  to  take  up 
the  coal  oil  and  make  a  proper  emulsion. 
When  thoroughly  dissolved  and  well  boil- 
ed, place  five  gallons  of  this  hot  soap  in 
an  empty  barrel,  some  distance  from  the 
boiling  kettle,  to  prevent  accident  from 
fire;  then  add  coal  oil  and  churn  vigor- 
ously for  about  ten  minutes,  with  a  stick 
with  cross  pieces  about  five  inches  wide 
at  the  end,  forming  a  T.  If  the  mixture 
at  this  time  turns  to  a  thick  crearn,  pour 
in  a  little  cold  water — say  two  gallons — 
and  churn  again  for  a  few  moments;  then 
add  five  or  more  gallons  of  water.  Do  not 
pour  in  water  all  at  once,  but  a  little  at  a 
time,  and  churn  constantly  while  pouring 
in  the  water.  This  mixture,  when  prop- 
erly emulsified,  will  form  a  whitish, 
creamy  substance.  The  most  particular 
attention  must  be  given  to  making  the 
emulsion  properly,  otherwise  the  oil,  not 
being  incorporated  with  the  soap  and  wa- 


ter, will  rise  to  the  top,  and  while  portions 
of  the  tree  will  receive  an  overdose  of 
kerosene,  other  parts  will  get  little  else 
than  soap  and  water.  The  result  will  be 
unsatisfactory,  for  the  coal  oil  must  go 
with  the  soap  to  do  effectual  work  in  kill- 
ing the  bug. 

As  soon  as  practicable  after  the  first  ap- 
plication, proceed  to  cut  back  and  thin  out 
the  tree,  burning  the  brush  as  near  the 
tree  from  which  it  is  taken  as  possible 
without  danger  of  injury  to  it.  A  large 
canvas  under  the  tree  during  the  pruning 
will,  if  carefully  disinfected  at  the  finish, 
prove  of  considerable  benefit.  A  band  of 
rope,  thoroughly  smeared  with  coal  tar, 
about  the  trunk  of  the  tree,  first  putting 
a  band  of  leather  or  thick  cloth  over  which 
to  tie  the  rope,  will  prevent  the  insect  from 
ascending,  and  tend  to  indicate  its  presence 
and  location  for  future  treatment.  Cases 
of  ordinary  infection  can  undoubtedly  be 
cured  if  the  above  is  carried  out  faithfully 
arid  to  the  very  letter,  and  by  keeping 
such  close  watch  over  the  trees  that  the 
reappearance  of  the  bug  .is  at  once  fol- 
lowed by  an  application  of  the  spray,  be- 
fore any  time  has  lapsed  for  breeding  and 
spreading.  In  aggravated  cases  of  infec- 
tion, where  t,he  bug  has  a  strong  hold 
upon  the  tree,  topping,  careful  brush 
burning  and  hand  scrubbing  must  be  re- 
sorted to.  But  even  in  such  cases  the  use 
of  the  spray  at  first  would  much  simplify 
the  work  and  lessen  the  danger  of  scatter- 
ing and  spreading  the  scale  bugs.  It  is 
highly  necessary  to  success  that  all  weeds 
in  the  vicinity  of  infected  trees  should  be 
carefully  gathered  up  and  burned. 

For  the  red  scale,  July  and  August  are 
the  best  months  to  spray  in,  as  they  hatch 
during  May  and  June.  Use  thirty-five 
pounds  of  soap  and  three  gallons  coal  oil 
to  every  one  hundred  gallons  of  water.  If 
sprayed  in  September  or  October  add  five 
pounds  of  soap. 

The  best  months  to  spray  for  black 
scale  are  September  and  October.  They 
hatch  through  July  and  August.  Use 
•ty  pounds  soap  and  two  and  one-half 
ons  coal  oil  to  every  one  hundred  gal- 
ions  water.  Thinning  out  ami  cutting 
away  all  surplus  v  od  will  do  inuoli  to- 
wards relieving  tl;  -ees  from  black  scalu. 
Care  should  be  t  .jn  to  strain  the  wash 
through  tine  wire  cloth,  otherwise  frequent 
stops  will  be  necessary  to  clear  the  spray 
nozzle. 


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